5 Essential Tips for Young Drivers to Stay Protected on the Road

If you’ve recently passed your driving test, then you might be excited at the prospect of getting behind the wheel on your own for the first time. It’s worth taking a moment, however, to reflect on some of the challenges ahead. Let’s take a look at five essential tips that will help you avoid, or minimise, those challenges.

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Understand the Rules of the Road

To begin with, it’s a good idea to understand the laws that govern roads in the UK. Being aware of the law will help you to avoid being caught on the wrong side of it. Bear in mind that the law will change over the course of your driving career, and thus it’s a good idea to stay on top of those changes. For example, there was a change in the law in 2022 that required drivers to avoid holding or interacting with their mobile phones, satnavs or other devices while driving.

Keep Your Vehicle in Top Condition

Your vehicle will need to be regularly serviced and maintained, especially if you’re going to be covering large distances. This will help you to ensure that the vehicle remains safe, and that you avoid costly (and inconvenient) breakdowns.

By checking your tyres, brakes, and fluids, you’ll be helping to avoid more significant problems down the line. You might also schedule a routine service, especially if the car has been on the road for some years.

Plan Your Routes Carefully

When you’re making last-minute decisions, or driving under pressure, you’re more likely to run into problems. You might find that your attention is divided, especially if you’re approaching busy junctions in a big city for the first time.

This problem can often be solved with the help of navigation apps like Waze, and by familiarising yourself with a given route before you set off.

Insurance for young drivers is often cheaper if you’re able to avoid accidents during the first year or so. Thus, it’s worth taking extra precautions to limit the risk.

Practise Defensive Driving

‘Defensive driving’ is an important concept to understand when you’re a new driver. It basically entails anticipating what could possibly go wrong before it happens. What happens if the driver in front of you suddenly slams on the brakes? What happens if a child suddenly runs into the road?

In practice, defensive driving simply means paying attention, avoiding tailgating, and limiting your speed. These simple things can vastly reduce the likelihood of an accident.

Invest in the Right Safety Features

Many modern vehicles come equipped with special features designed to reduce the risk of an accident. These include automatic emergency braking, which will perform an emergency stop with the extra delay of the driver’s reaction time, and lane assist, which will nudge you back into lane if you start to drift. These features can eliminate driver error, and reduce the likelihood of an accident. This can, in turn, drive down insurance premiums.

Author: Courtenay

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