If you’re looking for ways to be a safer driver, you’ll probably find people suggesting that you drive with your lights on at all hours of the day. You don’t just need to turn your headlights on at night. Flipping them on during the day doesn’t change the way that you see the road at all, but it helps make you more visible to other drivers, thereby reducing the odds of an accident.
Does this actually help? It certainly can’t hurt, but are you really going to avoid an accident just because you had your headlights on at noon?
There is a small decrease in accident frequency
The reason that people point to this step is because it is very easy to do and studies have found that it can make it around 5 to 10% less likely that you will be involved in a car accident. With any sort of benefit, it just makes sense to turn them on. It’s an easy way to lower the odds that you’ll be seriously injured.
That said, you can clearly see that this is not some sort of driving hack that is going to keep you safe. A reduction of 5% isn’t that huge, and you still face plenty of risks from other drivers. Someone who is looking down at their phone may be slightly more likely to notice you and look up if the lights are on, but there’s still a massive chance that they’re just never going to see your car and cause an accident.
If this happens and you suffer serious injuries, be sure you know how to seek compensation to help cover your medical bills, lost wages and many other costs.