Drive Carefully at Night

Many drivers don’t like driving at night, and given the fact that 40 per cent of crashes occur in the twilight or night-time hours, it’s easy to see why.  Driving conditions change remarkably after dark, as vision is reduced and it’s much harder to spot cyclists, motorcylists and pedestrians when the headlights are on.

One of the main causes for serious motorway accidents is when drivers fall asleep at the wheel – 20 per cent of UK motorway accidents are caused this way.

One of the groups of drivers most at risk for night time accidents is young, inexperienced drivers.  There are training courses for people who have already passed their test which contain night driving modules, to help people build up the skills they need for safe driving at night.

So how can you make sure you’re safe on the road after dark?

The easiest option is to do your driving in the daytime, but sometimes life’s schedule doesn’t allow you to avoid night driving altogether.

The most important thing is to plan your route in advance.  If one of your passengers is also insured to drive your car, you could share the driving with them. Even then, don’t drive beyond the time you would usually stay awake – book an overnight stay if necessary.

Take a break every two hours.  It’s very rare to fall asleep immediately at the wheel without feeling tired first. If possible, don’t even get to the tired stage – pull over before it happens. Just as some of today’s cars are designed to run as efficiently as possible – like hybrids and low emission cars – others have special accessories to ensure driver safety at night.

For example, Volvo pioneered the Driver Alert system.  If the car decides that the driver is sleepy, it sets off an audible alarm. Others come with in-dash night-vision systems that make it easier to read the night-time road ahead of you.

It’s also important to check all your vehicle lights are all working before you set off, if for no other reason than it’s a legal requirement to have properly functioning rear and front lights when driving at night.