NORTHWEST ARKANSAS — Police officers and insurance companies often look at fault in auto accidents - who caused the accident? Those violating the law usually receive a notice to appear in court because they are being charged with a traffic violation of some sort, and insurance companies sometimes raise insurance rates because of those traffic convictions and accidents in which the insured driver is found at fault.

When I was working for a trucking company, accidents were evaluated on the basis of whether or not they were preventable. In other words, an accident might clearly be the fault of another driver, but if our truck driver could have prevented the accident by safe and sensible driving practices, it was not considered an unpreventable accident.

For example, I was once in an accident in which another oncoming truck lost part of his load as it passed my truck and trailer on a two-lane highway. Part of the other truck's load hit my truck and trailer as it fell off and bounced off the pavement in my lane. That was ruled an unpreventable accident because there was nothing I could have done to avoid it. However, if part of the other driver's load had fallen off his truck in my lane ahead of me and I hit it because I was not looking ahead or driving too fast for conditions, the accidentmay have still been the fault of the other driver for losing a portion of his load on the highway; but it would have been preventable for me because I would have had time to see it and stop or safely maneuver around it.

I share this with you in hopes of changing your thinking about accidents. Just because another driver makes a mistake or drives foolishly doesn't relieve you of being safe and sensible. Most accidents are preventable even if someone else is at fault. It is every driver's job to do all in his or her power to avoid accidents and stay safe and alive. Whose fault the accident is won't matter much to you if you die as a result of not avoiding an accident which could have been prevented.

Driving at a safe and sensible speed is one of the steps you can take to prevent and avoid accidents even when another driver is at fault.

Safe and Sensible Speed

Whether you believe it or not, speed limits are posted for a reason - safety! However, driving the posted speed limit is not always safe and sensible. In fact, the posted speed limit is a maximum safe speed, not a minimum. And, there are many conditions which make it very unsafe and anything but sensible to drive the maximum speed limit on a road or highway. So, howdo you know what is safe and sensible? Following are some guidelines to consider:

1. It's never safe and sensible to exceed the maximum speed limit. Why? Well, even if you are sure that you can safely drive 5 to 10 miles over the speed limit and get from point A to point B, it's not sensible; because you just may get a ticket and a fine, and that may raise your insurance costs, and too many tickets may cause you to lose your driving privileges. Add to this the cost for more fuel use and more wear and tear on your vehicle, and it's really not sensible.

And you know what? It's really not safe either. At higher speeds, a simple mistake by you or another driver is much more likely to be deadly. If you don't believe me, ask a law enforcement officer who has had to measure the skid marks, count the number of times a car rolled over and over, and notify the next of kin. I tell you this because I've had to write the tickets and have some vivid memories from accident scenes. The few minutes you may save by exceeding the speed limit are not worth the cost. Believe me!

1. It's never safe and sensible to drive faster than visibility and reaction time permit. What am I saying? It's not safe and sensible to drive 65 mph when your visibility is reduced down to 300 feet or less (the distance illumined by most headlights). You just can't react, brake and stop quickly enough even if you are on dry pavement and have good brakes. And if you're driving a loaded tractor-trailer rig, See DRIVING Page 7Ayou can almost double that distance.

Think about it. 65 mph is 95 feet per second. Reaction time is 3/4 of a second or 71 feet, and braking distance for a car under ideal conditions is 245 feet. Add this up, and you'll need at least 316 feet to react and stop under perfect conditions. How often are conditions perfect? A truck has lag time for air brakes and just plain takes a lot more room to stop. My point is: If you can't react and stop within the distance you can see, you're going too fast!

You would be wise to make sure you can see at least 4 seconds ahead in a car and 7 to 8 seconds in a truck. Count off the distance and see if you’re allowing yourself enough time to react and stop.

1. It's never safe and sensible to drive faster than road conditions permit. Stopping distance formulas include a figure for the friction of the road surface. If the roadis wet or icy, the friction is greatly reduced and stopping distance is greatly increased. The same is true of sand or gravel surfaces. Add to this the increased risk of losing traction or going into a skid on slippery road surfaces, and you'll hopefully see the need to slow down and not brake or accelerate quickly. If you don't, you'll learn the hard way and hopefully live to remember your lesson. Hills, grades, curves and other road conditions must also be taken into consideration. Slow down and be safe and sensible!

Just a safety note regarding fog and other reducedvisibility conditions: If you find yourself in fog, heavy rain, blowing dust or snow, or other conditions in which visibility is so poor that you need to stop, try to make sure you get safely off the roadway and out of harm's way so that someone else who is not being very safe and sensible does not crash into you.

Randy Moll is the managing editor of the Westside Eagle Observer. He may be reached by email at [email protected].

Opinion, Pages 6 on 08/15/2012