Not every driving video captured by BlackVue and sent to us to be featured on our website is of a spectacular car collision. Sometimes – or, actually, pretty often – we receive footage of close calls recorded by the users’ BlackVue dashcams.
We collected five such close calls into a compilation video, which you can watch here (or by clicking the thumbnail above). The videos featured in the video are recorded by the BlackVue DR900S-2CH dashcams and the DR750S-2CH dashcam.
Whether it’s a situation caused by bad driving, retaliatory behavior or an emergency braking on the road, near misses are more common than you think. While unavoidable, there are ways of preventing close calls from becoming actual car crashes.
What should you do, then?
Well, first of all, always use your turn signals. As seen in the compilation video, one of the drivers forgoes the indicator completely when trying to change lanes (and almost collides with the BlackVue user’s car). Keep in mind that using your turn signals does not give you priority to change lane. However, it does help to avoid spooking other drivers. Plus, it’s just the nice thing to do!
Secondly, checking your blind spots is always a good idea. Here is how to do it. Remember to grip your steering wheel firmly when you’re doing these checks, to prevent accidently veering into another lane prematurely.
And lastly, drive defensively. The definition of defensive driving by the National Safety Council’s Defensive Driving Course is “driving to save lives, time, and money, in spite of the conditions around you and the actions of others”. It means that you need to be always prepared for all sorts of actions and reactions of other drivers and pedestrians, and that includes being alert and distraction-free, as well as looking ahead and expecting the unexpected at any given moment.
By following these simple steps you can reduce your odds of getting into actual accidents. Drive safely!