Thousands of car accidents happen in America every year, but many of them can actually be preventable if the car owner takes greater care of their vehicle. Exercising caution when driving is one of the best ways to prevent auto accidents, but you also need to remember that it’s important to maintain your automobile for your safety and the safety of other people on the streets.
In the year 2019 alone, more than 12.15 million vehicles were involved in crashes in America. Common causes of car accidents include violations of traffic rules, defective parts, and poor maintenance.
Victims of auto accidents frequently have serious injuries that take a long time to heal, and the medical costs can pile up quickly. Victims also miss income from work and go through great suffering, and sometimes that can become lifelong.
If you have been in a car crash and have sued the party at fault for the accident, their insurance firm will attempt to coerce you into accepting an inadequate settlement offer as compensation. That is why car accident victims should contact a car accident lawyer for guidance and counsel as soon as possible after a collision so that they can receive appropriate compensation for their injuries and property damages.
Common Maintenance Processes to Avoid Car Accidents
It is a known fact that people drive slowly and more carefully when they have spent money to maintain their car’s condition, and maintenance also reduces the possibility of a car breaking down while you’re driving and causing sudden crashes.
A car experiencing a mechanical problem may not be able to stop, may swerve into other cars, and may lose all control of the vehicle. In these situations, explosions or fires might occur from other vehicle components that weren’t being maintained.
Keeping your car in good working order reduces the likelihood that someone else will blame you for the collision because, in an accident claim, it may be quite helpful to be able to demonstrate that your car has had routine maintenance. Let’s see the most common car parts that need regular maintenance:
1. Brakes
Brake failure is a factor in thousands of accidents annually, and it may result from brake pads that have worn too thinly on the rotors. Every year, check the pads and rotors and bring your car to a reliable mechanic for a check, even if it costs you a larger sum than taking it to a local repair shop. If your car begins to screech, scrape, or veer to one side when you use the brakes, these indicate deteriorated brakes that need immediate repair.
2. Tires
In order to notify a driver when one or more tires have low tire pressure, the majority of modern cars have warning lights, and drivers should take the car to a maintenance shop when this indicator starts beeping. Drivers should manually check the tire pressure if this option is not available in their car, and it is also crucial to check that the tire is not worn out in older cars. The tire pressure should also be set according to the manufacturer’s recommendations because blowouts from worn-out tires can make a driver lose control and crash.
3. Windows and Lights
Keep the windows clean from both inside and outside, regularly clean the mirrors, and once a month, make sure all of the lights of the car are still functional. Additionally, you should replace your wiper blades every six months or sooner if streaking starts, and immediately fix the headlights if you are experiencing problems seeing the road at night.
Conclusion
Drivers have an obligation to maintain their cars, and they should ensure the cars are in safe operating condition for the benefit of commuters and themselves. A mechanical problem has to be fixed right away because a tragic collision might occur out of nowhere if warning indications of the vehicle’s condition are ignored by the owner of the car.
If you have been in a car crash and the other party is at fault, contact a car accident lawyer who will check all the factors that led to the crash, including the poor car maintenance practices of the other party, and help you receive compensation.