.svg)
.svg)
.svg)
The festive season is approaching and after a long year of hard work most of us will take a holiday away somewhere. Safety tips are foremost on our minds as we think about hitting the highways with our families for an extended trip.
Even if you’re not going away, there are numerous accidents on the road at this time of year and safety is always a concern.
Safety tips for accident management
In a recent interview on Radio 702 Eugene Herbert, founder of Master Drive, advanced driver training, gave some safety tips for accident management and discussed what you should and should not do at the scene of an accident.
Assess the situation
Although many people are afraid of being sued if they try to assist in an accident, Herbert believes, “If there is an imminent threat to life then you should help …To say that you will be held accountable is a cop-out. If you’re in a situation to lend assistance then you should.”
So, if someone might die because they are trapped in a car that’s on fire then you should help – if you’ve saved their life it’s not like they’ll sue you for breaking a rib.
Be pragmatic
If you have an accident and your car is only slightly damaged, but is in an unsafe place such as on a blind rise or curve - move it.
Often, says Herbert, people don’t want to move their vehicles while they take time to recover or are waiting for police to arrive on the scene.
If you are positioned in a place where fast moving traffic can’t easily see you, you’re likely to cause a far worse accident. Assess the situation and be pragmatic.
Always wear a seatbelt
Another one of Herbert’s safety tips is to always wear a seatbelt.
There are, of course, examples of accidents where people who were wearing seatbelts couldn’t free themselves and were burnt to death or drowned as a result, but believes Herbert, “If you look at the number of instances where lives were saved as a result of wearing a seatbelt it far outstrips that one instance, or two, where somebody died as a result of that.”
Do what you can
Accident management is about doing what you can.
It might seem heroic to enact dramatic scenes from the movies, but in many cases you are better positioned to help just by sitting and reassuring someone who has been in an accident.
Herbert says that passers-by can be of great assistance by offering consideration to victims through something as small as offering them some water.
We hope that by following the relevant safety tips you’ll never be in an accident.
In the unfortunate incident that you, or one of your staff members, are, Avis Fleet Services customers can rest assured that the trauma ends as soon as you get home safely.
With Avis Fleet Services accident management solution we handle all the paperwork and actively manage your vehicle claim by sourcing the best repair value for the vehicle.
Visit Avis Fleet Services for more information on how Avis can work for you.
