When you drive, do you use your signal?

[The Black Wolf]

http://money.msn.com/auto-insurance/...insurance.aspx

The next time you are driving, count how many times your fellow drivers fail to use their turn signals. Chances are you will run out of fingers and toes before the engine is warm.

Nearly half of all drivers either don't signal to change lanes or fail to turn the indicator off if they do, according to a newly released report from the Society of Automotive Engineers. Researchers observed 12,000 cars and found a failure rate on lane changes of 48%. One driver in four failed to use a signal to make a turn, the report says.

Those findings back up a 2006 survey conducted by Response Insurance in which 57% of American drivers admitted not using turn signals when changing lanes. Among drivers ages 18 to 24, 71% said they don't use their signals.

Even more disturbing than the statistics were the reasons. Forty-two percent of the signal-avoiders said they didn't have time; 23% admitted they were just too lazy.

Perhaps the rest ran out of blinker fluid. But that momentary lapse comes back to haunt many drivers.

"All drivers have an ongoing duty" to use signals, says SAE report author Richard Ponziani, "just as they have a duty to stop at a stop sign or at a red light."

While failure to signal may seem like a small infraction, improper turning and lane changing (the most frequent infractions associated with failure to signal) cause a lot of car accidents. In New York's most recent tally of accidents, unsafe lane changes were the fifth-most-common cause of accidents, and turning improperly was No. 7.

Nationwide, neglected or improper turn signals cause 2 million car accidents a year, Ponziani says. And for drivers involved in those accidents, a citation for failure to use turn signals could make the difference between a covered repair and a denied claim.

What is the law?

All states require drivers to use directional signals to indicate their intention to turn, change lanes or pass a vehicle.

The details differ, but the goal is the same: No surprises. Indicators make your fellow drivers aware of your intentions and give them enough time to adapt or respond. While the penalty varies by state, failure to signal is usually a minor traffic violation.

According to Penny Gusner, the consumer analyst at CarInsurance.com, a failure-to-signal citation could affect your insurance in several ways.

Many states do not allow insurers to raise rates for just one ticket, but a failure-to-signal citation could cost you a good-driver discount. That could bump up your premiums by as much as 25%, Gusner says. If your state does allow insurers to ding you for a single moving violation, look for a rate increase in the 5% to 20% range.

But the real cost comes if you're involved in an accident. Comparative negligence laws allow insurance companies to reduce claims proportional to degree of fault, Gusner says. If failing to signal puts you more than 50% at fault for the accident, your claim can be adjusted downward or denied altogether, Gusner says.

And contributory negligence states -- Alabama, Maryland, North Carolina and the District of Columbia -- prohibit a driver from recovering any damages if found even a small amount at fault for the accident.

Failure to signal would certainly qualify.

Do you signal when you drive?

I do. I also know how to hand signals if my lights go out or something happens.

[gangsta_795]

Yup and I believe everyone should.

[mooninites]

I always signal. I hate bad drivers and ones that think they own the road. It's not hard to signal or follow traffic laws. Plus note with all this technology in cars people are going to be less likely to pay attention

Sent from my HTC VLE_U using Tapatalk 2

[Fijiandoce]

i always use my indicators.
i hate when people ignore them though!
especially bikers!!

how would one pass their test and not know that indicators are compulsory?
instructors watch for this crap! as well as your eyes >_> creepy!

[DreDayDetox]

Always do, I hate it when someone doesn't. Big pet peeve of mine. This is generally what I want to do when someone cuts me off without at least signalling.



I see plenty of those assholes everyday. So to scare them, I usually tailgate them, or if they're on the other lane, I match speeds with them until they notice we are traveling at the same speed. It's fun! They usually speed off when they notice.

[keefy]

I always do thesedays.
Its the decent thing to do it warns people even pedestrians that you will slow down to turn off at the next junction or just pull over to the side of the road.

Not indicating coming off of roundabouts is annoying.

Always do, I hate it when someone doesn't. Big pet peeve of mine. This is generally what I want to do when someone cuts me off without at least signalling.


I see plenty of those assholes everyday. So to scare them, I usually tailgate them, or if they're on the other lane, I match speeds with them until they notice we are traveling at the same speed. It's fun! They usually speed off when they notice.

Tailgating is worse if they suddenly brake which is what I would do and have done you have a greater risk of hittin the arse end of their car and its your fault.

[THUGGEDOUT]

I do, the only time I don't is when I'm cutting in front of dickhead drivers as I suffer from road rage...

[Bigdoggy]

I was thinking about this a few days ago. I always use my signal, ALWAYS. Sometimes I catch my self using it on sideroads with sharp turns lol. but yea, when I merge or turn I always use it.

I find it extremely annoying a lot of drivers don't use their turn signal, it doesn't make sense because the turn signal lever is just 2 inches from a persons hand.

[BoyBettaKnow]

Most of the times I do. If im driving at night and there are no other cars, cyclists or pedestrians around sometimes I do it without signalling but it's a habit so I do signal 9/10 times


BBK. Tapatalking.

[Kuro]

So many shit drivers in Massachusetts especially Boston lol. Yes I always signal.

[Everyday]

lmfao im sorry but seriously some people excuses were they dont have enough time? ARE you kidding me, some drivers need license suspensions so they can realize the world doesnt go 120mph all the time.

[Rapture]

I always use my turn signals, even when I know there's no one around to benefit from it. I mostly do this to keep up the natural habit of it.

[Lethal_NFS]

I always use my signal. Even if nobody is around, I still use my signals.

More importantly! Did you guys know that on your dashboard there is an arrow on your gas gauge showing you which side of your vehicle your gas cap is on?

[keefy]

I always use my signal. Even if nobody is around, I still use my signals.

More importantly! Did you guys know that on your dashboard there is an arrow on your gas gauge showing you which side of your vehicle your gas cap is on?

There is not on my dashboard.
except Honda civic every car I owned so far its on the right.

[Rekmon]

Only time I don't use my signals is if I'm nowhere near any cars on the freeway...and there's always cars nearby.
I don't understand not using signals, it's simple.

I always use my signal. Even if nobody is around, I still use my signals.

More importantly! Did you guys know that on your dashboard there is an arrow on your gas gauge showing you which side of your vehicle your gas cap is on?

Only on some newer cars. I've only owned one car that has that, a 2009 dodge.
However...on a single exhaust car the gas cap is on the opposite side of the exhaust tip.

[RaY_210]

Oh boy, a driving thread. This should be fun lol. Yes I use mine. Hate shitty drivers. Not using signals was always my biggest driving pet peeve. But I've recently started a whole lot more of people running red lights that it's taken the top spot. Seriously, on average I probably see 4 or 5 cars a day running red lights. And not the yellow lights that turn red while you're in the intersection. I mean it's red and people still run it. So damn ridiculous

[DreDayDetox]

Where I am, there are more pedestrians running red lights than cars lol. It sucks you're still accountable if you hit them by accident, because of their wrongdoing. This one guy was crossing the street at rush hour..just walking slowly like a douchebag..he finally notices the incoming cars and makes a run for it. Idiot.

[Sylar]

i hate it when people don't use their indicators or they use the wrong lane at roundabouts/junctions. So many shit drivers out there it's mental, how some of these people pass their tests is beyond me.

[podsaurus]

At every single turn. So many people don't use their signals I've seen.

[Completely Average]

I use them just because I enjoy making other drivers look at them. Sequential turn signals are fun.

[FdMstng99]

I had to use hand signals for a few days to turn as I had a fuse blow out. Took a few days before I could get a new fuse but I'm surprised at how many people looked at me like I was crazy using hand signals to turn. I doubt half of them knew what they were and what I was doing.

[Acid Snake]

If you aren't going to use signals, you shouldn't be on the road. I always use mine.

[Funeralfog]

this is the perfect article for right now. i have been noticing more and more how i am one of the only few people who use turn signals and it's annoying the shit out of me