Summertime is rife with fun activities, including festivals, pub crawls and live music. When driving to one of these destinations, you will want to pay close attention to safety, as summer is the time of year that sees the greatest number of fatal car crashes. There are several reasons why deadly car accidents tick up during the summer months.
Drunk driving accidents
Many events in summer involve drinking. Most people drink responsibly, but even responsible drinkers can overestimate their sobriety at times. This is especially dangerous if they decide to get behind the wheel of a car.
It is common knowledge that having a blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 means you are legally intoxicated for the purposes of driving. Still, even having a BAC below 0.08 can impair your driving abilities. It only takes a few drinks to impair your reaction time and coordination, both of which can easily lead to a car crash. So, you will want to think twice before drinking and driving following a summertime celebration.
Speed-related accidents
People, simply put, are often in a hurry. We might drive above the posted speed limit out of a sense of urgency or efficiency, but speeding puts all motorists at risk. It may seem harmless to drive above the speed limit, especially if traffic is light or you are simply matching the speed of traffic. Still, if you are speeding you could lose control of the vehicle, which could lead to a collision.
Inexperienced drivers
Teenagers with a driver’s license are usually eager to get behind the wheel, and with school out of session, more teens are driving to activities and summer jobs. However, teen drivers are inexperienced and do not have the maturity many older drivers have.
Teens may not know how to adjust to dangerous road conditions, and they may not have the judgment needed to appreciate how to handle their vehicle safely in traffic. This means they are more likely to be involved in serious or even deadly motor vehicle accidents.
Stay safe this summer
We all want to enjoy our summer, and part of this enjoyment is ensuring we arrive at our destinations and get home again safely. It may seem inconsequential to drive after drinking, to speed, or to fail to warn your teen driver about safe driving practices, but these mistakes can easily lead to car crashes that end in tragedy for those involved. Many drivers who are involved in car crashes in Georgia choose to pursue personal injury claims to recover their financial losses.