A Dallas attorney can represent you if another driver’s negligence caused a wreck, but not if you caused the wreck yourself. The weather is one of the most significant factors in many auto accidents. A car accident lawyer oftentimes finds themselves representing clients that were injured because the person who hit them failed to accommodate the weather conditions in their driving. There are some things you should know about how the conditions affect your driving.
Hot, Unpleasant Weather
Hot weather with clear roads may seem like the best time to drive, but this isn’t always the case. When it’s hot out, people tend to be shorter of temper and they may fly off the handle and start driving aggressively. There is also a very good chance that many of the people on the roads want to get out of their cars and into someplace cooler, so they may be in a real rush and, thus, drive dangerously.
Rainy Weather
Rainy weather affects visibility and traction. Where visibly is concerned, headlights don’t help much in daylight rainstorms, but they do help other drivers to see you, which is vital. Remember that your stopping distance is vastly increased when it’s rainy out. Slow down for intersections earlier and make sure that you account for poor traction when approaching corners. If you don’t, you can easily find yourself skidding off into a ditch or into another car.
Winter Weather
Snow is a bit worse than rain where traction and breaking are concerned. It also makes visibility variable. When the snow is coming straight at the windshield, especially at night, it can be hard to judge where objects are in relation to your car and can distract your eyes as they follow the motion of the snow. Be sure to slow down in snow. While vehicles in more northerly climates are usually winterized before the bad weather starts. Dallas cars tend to run summer tires year around and that means that they have very little traction in these conditions.
Before you feel too safe in your four- or all-wheel drive vehicle, remember that neither configuration helps you stop. In fact, unless you’re actually plowing through a lot of snow or mud, neither makes much of a difference at all. You also need to remember that front- and rear-wheel drive vehicles handle much differently in slippery conditions and to keep that in mind when you’re compensating for bad roads.
