When it’s raining cats and dogs, you need to take extra care if you set out in your car. A recent report ranks Georgia as the seventh most dangerous state for fatal rain-related crashes, with 142 every year at a rate of 19.8 per million drivers.
The problem is that many people make no allowance for the rain. If they always leave for work at 8:50 a.m., they’ll do that regardless of the torrential downpour outside their window. It could result in them and anyone else they hit not making it to work that day or ever again.
How can you reduce the chance rain catches you out?
Try these tips:
- Check the forecast: If you always get up at 8:30 a.m. and leave the house at 8:50 a.m., you may want to do this night before. That way, if heavy rain is forecast, you can set your alarm to allow extra time for your journey.
- Delay your journey: If a big storm is forecast, consider working from home or postponing your trip to the store.
- Replace your tires: You might get away without a cop noticing that your tires are worn. Yet that is not why you should replace your tires regularly. Tires help you grip the road, and every little bit counts, especially when the surface is wet.
- Turn your lights on: Heavy rain and spray decrease visibility. Lights increase it.
- Slow down: This is the most important of all. Wet brakes are less effective. Faster speeds make skids, hydroplaning and spraying water up into the face of other drivers more likely.
Despite taking extra caution, you could still get injured in a crash due to the lack of another driver’s lack of care. If so, you need to find out how to hold them responsible.