Keeping Your Family Safe While Traveling

The warmer weather means increased traffic and travel on the roadways. Read our tips to help keep your family safe on your next trip.

Related: Uncomfortable Truths About Distracted Driving

Leave the cellphone in the back seat

According to Utah Zero Fatalities, if you text and drive, you're as dangerous as someone who is twice the legal drinking limit.Distractions such as cell phones and talking to other passengers account for 58.5% of the cause of crashes. But not having your phone in your hand means you won’t be tempted to look at it. If you need to use your phone’s GPS, start it before you start driving and use audio directions to avoid glancing down.

Bow out of the conversation

This one’s difficult because not talking to your passengers can be seen as rude. Train yourself not to look at the person with whom you’re speaking.

Check your tires

Hot weather weakens tires, making them more susceptible to popping. Proper air pressure will help avoid blowouts.

Don’t overload your car

This goes along with the suggestion above: Overloading your car means your tires are more likely to pop. Also, make sure your trailer or boat is properly hitched before driving off and properly secure your load.

Bring your insurance card with you

Take a few minutes to understand your benefits and where you can get urgent or emergency care while you're traveling.

Follow the above suggestions to make sure that an accident doesn’t ruin the best season of the year. And, if you’re a parent to a teenager, be sure to insist that they never use the phone while driving and know how to speak to their passengers without becoming distracted. You may feel like you’re nagging, but you just may end up saving a life.