Driving Me Mad – Five Of The Worst Bad Habits To Have Behind The Wheel

Bad habits can creep in while you’re behind the wheel of your car, especially if you drive a lot, or have been driving for a long time. Many people can be guilty of giving in to distractions when driving from place to place, including grabbing a bite to eat, squeezing in a quick coffee or changing the radio. If you’re rushing to an appointment or you’re late for work, speeding can also become a bad habit people slip into. These patterns of behavior aren’t only dangerous for the safety of you and other road users but habits such as braking sharply and flooring the accelerator can also be damaging to your car. Ensure you’re protected in the event of a breakdown with quality cover from RAC – and then make sure you steer clear of the worst driving habits.

IMAGE: PEXELS

Five Of The Worst Habits To Have Behind The Wheel

1. Mobile phone use
2. Distracted driving
3. Speeding
4. Tailgating
5. Failing to indicate

Which bad driving habits grind your gears? We’re going to cover what we consider to be the five worst habits to have when driving below.

Mobile Phone Use

This is the top one for a reason. People have even reported seeing other drivers watching videos on their handheld mobile phones! Using your phone behind the wheel is extremely dangerous, so if you need access to your phone while you’re driving you must organize hands-free access for yourself. Remember if you’re using a device it mustn’t block your view of the road ahead of you!

These guidelines from Gov.uk make it clear that you will be given six penalty points and a £200 fine if you use your phone while driving. Also if you gained your license in the last two years you will lose it as a result of mobile phone use. The only occasions in which you can use a hand-held phone in your vehicle is when the car is safely parked or if it’s unsafe or impractical for you to stop and you need to call 999 or 112 due to an emergency.

Distracted Driving

Using a mobile phone when driving is the ultimate distraction, but there are other distractions you should also avoid. We’ve all been there – you’re rushing from work to an appointment or another engagement and you have no time to eat. So you wolf down your dinner en route.

Carrying out tasks such as eating, drinking and doing your make-up (yes, people actually do that!) while driving isn’t actually illegal in themselves but if the action is deemed distracting you could receive a fine and penalty points on your license.

Speeding

Driving too fast is one of the most dangerous bad habits you can have as a driver – for you and everyone around you. The best way to reduce the temptation to drive quickly is to simply leave yourself more time to get from A to B. Just get up earlier! Speeding can cause life-threatening accidents, so avoid it at all costs. The minimum penalty is a £100 fine and three penalty points but it could be more depending on the speed you were traveling at. You could also be given the option of taking a speed awareness course.

Tailgating

The driver in front will be maddened that there is a car tailgating them and the driver behind will be frustrated that they can’t pass. There is no need to cause all of this stress and tension – not only is it irritating for everyone, the action of not leaving a safe stopping distance can cause serious accidents. This is annoying for all parties, so it’s best not to do it! Keep a safe distance between you and the car in front and only pass if and when it’s safe.

Failing To Indicate

‘Do you think I’m a mind reader?’ We’ve all seen examples of road rage on the television and in real life and one of the most common aggravators is when people fail to use their indicators. Not only is this annoying, but it’s dangerous for other road users, including pedestrians who think it’s safe for them to cross when it may not be. Indicate each and every time you turn to eliminate any element of confusion.

So there we have it! Five of the worst bad habits to have behind the wheel of your car – how many are you guilty of?

If you are interested in even more lifestyle-related articles and information from us here at Bit Rebels then we have a lot to choose from.

IMAGE: PEXELS