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Driving for Two: Driving Safety Tips for Expectant Mothers

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Driving for Two: Driving Safety Tips for Expectant Mothers

Driving for Two: Driving Safety Tips for Expectant Mothers

By Jan Hoen

While expectant mothers try their best to avoid potential health risks during their pregnancy, refraining from driving for nine months is simply not realistic for most. Therefore, the best an expectant mother can do is exercise best driving practices so that they and the baby on board face the least possible risk of harm.

Some driving safety tips for expectant mothers include:

Letting Others Run Errands for You When Possible

One of the benefits of being pregnant is that others typically recognize you’re caring for two. You should never accept unnecessary risk of harm to you or your child if you can avoid it. If someone else is willing to run an errand and do the driving for you, don’t be a hero—take them up on the offer.

Driving as Slowly as Possible

The laws of physics dictate that the greater speed you are traveling, the greater force your body will experience during a collision. Therefore, it is in your and your child’s interest to drive as slowly as possible. From a practical standpoint, minimizing your driving speed means:

  • Avoiding highways, interstates, and other roadways where you have no choice but to drive fast
  • Using the right-hand lane, which is the “slow lane.”
  • Taking the backroads when possible

There is simply too much at stake for you to drive at high speeds while pregnant. 

Doing Everything Possible to Avoid Causing an Accident

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) explains that drivers cause the vast majority of accidents. If you ensure that you are not the driver who causes an accident, you eliminate a substantial risk of injury to yourself and your child.

Best driving practices include:

  • Paying attention
  • Giving others the right of way (even if they are not in the right, which is called driving defensively)
  • Abiding by all traffic signals
  • Driving the speed limit

Safe driving is the only way of driving for expectant mothers.

Sitting in the Backseat When Possible

If you have to ride in a motor vehicle but don’t have to drive, consider sitting in the back seat. This may spare you from being struck by an airbag, taking the brunt of force in a rear-end or head-on collision, or striking the dashboard in the case of a collision.

Moving Your Seat Back as Far as Possible from the Steering Wheel

When you’re in the driver’s seat as an expectant mother, scoot your seat as far back as possible while still being able to reach the gas pedal and brake. This way, you may reduce the risk that your stomach will strike the steering wheel in the event of an accident.

Are You an Expectant Mother (or Anyone Else) Involved in an Accident? Call Hampton Injury Law PLC Today for a Free Case Evaluation

There is always a risk of an accident when you drive or ride in a motor vehicle. With these tips, though, we hope to help you avoid being in a collision, as this can be one of the most frightening events for a pregnant mother.

If you do fall victim to a motor vehicle accident, the injury attorneys at Hampton Injury Law PLC want to get justice for you. Call today for a free case evaluation about how we will seek money for medical bills, pain and suffering, and other damages.

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