If you’ve ever stood on a sidewalk curb or walked across a parking lot when an electric or hybrid car drives by, you may not know they’re there unless you’re looking at them. One of the benefits of electric and hybrid cars is they’re quiet. That’s also one of the downsides if you’re a pedestrian or cyclist who’s not paying attention!
Car insurance company statisticians and actuaries, along with members of the US Department of Transportation were warning of a coming tsunami of senior drivers in the early 2000’s. One of the predictions was 2015 would be a watershed year of fatal crashes involving senior drivers.
There are two blog posts I’ve written in the past several months on car related topics. One involved the airbag recall fracas between the auto makers, the air bag manufacturer, Takata, and Congress (see http://50.87.248.161/~wiseinsu/air-bags-recalls-mysteries-driving-changes/). The other involved our privacy rights from the auto makers (see http://50.87.248.161/~wiseinsu/privacy-rights-and-your-car/). I felt it was time to revisit and update these posts due to the movement in both of these stories.
Most of the time, I rarely think about my air bags. My car has full frontal air bags along with side curtain air bags. I have no desire to ever see what they look like or even discover how they work, but I’m very glad they are there. I have been in one major accident in my life, before the cars I owned had air bags. The seatbelt saved my life and protected me from suffering any major injuries. I’d like to avoid experiencing that again.
Which state has the worst drivers in America and what other states comprised the top 10 list? Conversely, which states have the best drivers in the county? A study published in December of 2013 answered these questions in their best and worst drivers list.
Chevrolet and its parent company, General Motors, have been in the news a lot lately. In February they recalled more than 1.6 million small cars due to faulty ignition switches, and announced another recall of 1.5 million vehicles on Monday, March 17. The ignition switch defect is attributed to 12 deaths and culminated in multiple investigations.
Finding the right booster seat for your child when they’ve outgrown their car seat is a lot easier with the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) annual rankings. The IIHS began ranking car seats in 2008 because their research showed most booster seats weren’t doing a good job of consistently or correctly positioning safety belts for children 4 to 8 years old. An improperly fitted seat belt can injure a child in an accident.
?Car seats have been designed to protect a child from injury and death when the vehicle they’re riding in is involved in an accident. Since their introduction, car seats have saved thousands of children’s lives.
What do you look for when you go car shopping; the model, styling, or color? Maybe it’s the options such as blue tooth, navigation system, heated seats, and moon roof. Or will you decide based on how you’re going to use it; shuttle kids, haul tools to a job site, go camping, or just to and from work? I’d like to suggest you add safety equipment to your evaluation criteria too!
In case you missed it National Teen Driving Week occurred two weeks ago. The goal of National Teen Driving Week is to improve teens driving safety by getting parents and teens working together. This year’s focus, “5 to Drive” was designed to start at least one conversation between parents and teens on safe driving habits. My hope is that there would be multiple conversations between teens and parents on driving. As a dad who’s helped raise three sons during their driving education process, I can attest there will be multiple opportunities to discuss all of the topics the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) suggests.
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