Every year hundreds of road accidents take place in the UAE. Most of these accidents can be avoided if you follow the traffic rules and keep an eye out for bad drivers. ServiceMarket brings you a list of the top causes of road accidents in the UAE and how to avoid and protect yourself from such incidents.
Driving Skills
Skillful driving comes with time and practice. For a novice, maneuvers like parallel parking and reversing can be especially daunting. They tend to misjudge the distance and end up hitting other cars and objects. Sometimes poor timing on a turn can also lead to a collision. These skills can be improved upon by taking driving lessons and observing a more experienced driver when in the passenger seat. However, while we can improve our driving skills, we have no control over other drivers. It is important to have the right car insurance in the UAE to protect yourself from bad or novice drivers.
Speeding
Speeding is one of the leading cause of accidents, not just in the UAE, but around the world. Accidents caused by speeding are often extremely dangerous and can cause severe physical damage or even result in death. On top of that, causing a car accident by speeding can lead to criminal prosecution. Speed limits should be followed regardless of how late one is getting. It’s better to get late than to get hurt or cause harm to anyone else by speeding.
Distracted Driving
In today’s technology driven world, distractions are everywhere and it seems we can never avoid them. A significant number of people text and make calls while driving. To avoid these distractions don’t use your phone while driving or better yet turn it off and put it in the glove compartment to avoid the temptation. Listening to loud music and spilling food or drink can also be a huge distraction, so best to not eat or drink while driving and keeping the music volume low. Always be attentive and focus on the task at hand.
Drifting
A cause of road accidents that has been incredibly sensationalized in the Gulf countries is drifting. It is very prominent in the UAE and extremely dangerous. Such reckless antics should be left to the professionals or on racing tracks and have no place on the streets.
Tailgating
Not leaving enough space between you and the driver in front of you is a well known cause of road accidents in the UAE. This reduces the time you have to make a sudden stop or slow down if the driver in front slows their vehicle or breaks unexpectedly. It is not illegal to tailgate, but it is definitely not safe. Keeping a safe distance from the vehicle in front of you can save you from a potential collision.
Not using turn signals
Not using the turn signal and changing lanes suddenly lead to unnecessary and avoidable accidents in the UAE. Changing lanes without any indication can cause other drivers to break suddenly, exposing them to rear end collision or veer off the road. They are often done without properly checking to see if the is room to move into the other lane which can cause them to hit other cars.
Being Young
Believe it or not, the biggest ‘cause’ of car accidents is being young men drivers. Most car accidents in the UAE are caused by men between the ages of 18 and 30. This is because young men are much more likely to be reckless and selfish when driving. The are also a lot more likely to try to show off dangerous driving stunts which can end in accidents. Finally, young men are a lot more impulsive which causes them to have a lack of judgement when driving.
Sleepiness/Drunkenness
Most accidents in the UAE actually don’t happen during rush hour. This is a huge misconception. In fact, most road accidents in the UAE happen during night time hours. There could be a few explanations for this. First, visibility at night is more reduced than during the day time. Not being able to see well can cause drivers to hit others cars, objects, and even pedestrians. People at night are also a lot more likely to be sleepy which can affect their driving skills and reaction times. Finally, drivers are a lot more likely to be drunk
during the night time hours.
Crossing Red Lights
A big cause of road accidents in the UAE is running red lights. Running a red light isn’t always intentional. In fact, most times it is an accident. Many drivers in the UAE opt to speed through a yellow light rather than slow down to a stop. This is very dangerous as it can lead to some drivers speeding through a red light and causing major accidents. T-Bone accidents are usually the result of this type of driving mistake. These accidents have both a high health and financial cost.
Lack of Judgement
Misjudging when to pull out of a parking space or into the street is actually a huge cause of accidents in the UAE. You can avoid this mistake yourself by always waiting a little bit longer for a break in the line of moving cars to drive. Don’t be distracted by honks and take your time to do the safer option.
To keep yourself covered in case of a road accident, head over to ServiceMarket and find the best car insurance companies in the UAE.
