Be honest: do you check your blind spot?

[Blueeberry]

I check mine (by quickly looking over my shoulder) religiously anytime I’m changing lane, especially on the motorway. Was speaking with a family member today however who seemed to think that blind spots were some sort of urban myth and insisted that you can see everything by just looking in your mirrors…

When I kindly informed her that no, you can’t see everything in your mirrors she told me that my idea of checking over my shoulder is ridiculous and dangerous, there’s no way that she’d feel comfortable doing it whilst driving. AIBU to think WTF?!

@Runssometimes · Today 17:07
* how good is your system at detecting smaller things like cyclists? Studies show that the automatic sensors aren’t failsafe so you should check.*

Very good point.

One car I drive goes nuts when it is exiting from the "leg" of a T junction which has consistant road safety barrier.
But only alarms to the left wing.
Is cant "see" the barrier to the front or to the right.

@AppropriateAdult Er no! It’s the highway code and people have certainly suggested looking over their shoulder! It’s that action that is not required. A look sideways is. I’ve certainly seen people on motorways looking round! The most dangerous part of motorway driving is getting into it in the first place. The motorway is usually at an acute angle and people are a poor judge of the speed of approaching traffic and how to slot into a gap. It’s a shame people get a licence without competency on motorways.

Well, I’ve been feeling guilty every time I look over my shoulder, that I’m doing something wrong and not driving well! I might not feel that way after this thread!

I’ve also had the experience of something coming past me that has been in my blind spot, and I didn’t have a clue it was there. Hence, I always do a shoulder glance despite what my instructor taught!

It is now getting into semantics. Surely everyone knows how to check their blind spot. I can look over and see cars in my blind spot that are not in the mirror. It takes no time at all and I don’t drift and would only look if I was confident at what was in front of me first before changing lane etc. But I guess if you have never been taught it or corrected by a driving instructor then you might not be doing it correctly or don’t really understand what it does hence people never checking and just moving over.

@WaitingForMojo Read the highway code I posted! It says look sideways! Not over your shoulder. However you could if you are pulling away from being stationary. Going at 65mph isn’t the same as moving out when parked. At that point, look for cyclists.

I check probably 95% of the time. My dad never looks over shoulder and riding as his passenger is, um, interesting....

The driving theory test says to look over your shoulder as you can't see everything in the mirror. Sounds like there are some dodgy instructors around if they are teaching something different (unless modern cars have cameras showing surrounding vehicles in the way that big HGVs do - my car is the opposite of high tech!)

Rule 161

https://www.highwaycodeuk.co.uk/using-the-road.html

I do the Dutch reach before opening the car door to avoid cyclists too

you have just reminded me of a very loud bang outside my house a few years back when someone didn’t look and opened their car door as a car drove by. I guess they didn’t think about looking over their shoulder

Everytime!

Every time. But then I also ride a motorcycle, so I'm hyper safety aware.

I recently passed. So can give current teaching / current highway code perspective.

You don’t need to check blindspots when changing lanes. You can, but don’t have to - assuming you change one lane at a time.

the reason is that when changing lanes your blind spot is practically none existent. If you check mirrors correctly by the time you check your blind spot they won’t be in your blind spot. Your peripheral vision should pick up on that. There was a good youtube video explaining this. That’s why wing mirror positioning is crucial.

what they advice learners is that you only check on taking off. Avoid during lane changes and when turning right because you should be paying attention in-front of you more than behind you. The thing that learners should ve checking their mirrors every 5 seconds with ridiculous motions is also a myth. You are expected to do that only when there is need - speed/position change

That’s about moving off - which is correct.

There is no need to check when changing lanes/turning right. You can but generally is advised against.

I noticed friends who do check, don’t actually signal, which is worse lol

I’ve been driving since 1998 and I still adopt the 10 to 2 position. I was also taught to move the wheel as if “drying a dinner plate”

As for parking on a hill, my husband put his car into reverse when downhill AND turns the wheels inwards.

My shoulder is to my side. If I turn my head sideways I am looking over my shoulder. Not over the back of it, or behind me, but over, ie across/along, my shoulder. And my eyes can flick a bit further back. That’s what people mean by looking over their shoulder for the blind spot. What are you imagining?

My friends husband was killed on a motorbike last year when a driver didn’t see him. He left behind a 5 year old son who will have to grow up without his daddy because someone didn’t take half a second to twist their head and check.

A friend who was one of two men who built the extension on our house was killed in a similar accident quite a lot of years ago now, his kids were older though.

Living in a pub from 5 years old - early 20’s (then working in it for 15 years after), we lost multiple customer to car and bike accidents - far too many of them due to another driver simply being unaware they were there.

Always check. You should always have a big enough gap in front of you to give you the time you need to safely check once you have checked your mirrors, just before you move. It could save someone’s life.

I don’t understand the advice that by the time you check your mirrors they won’t be in the blind spot anymore. People drive erratically and often speed and slow down (having cruise control really shows this up) so often people drive fast then sit in the blind spot doing the same speed as me for ages before speeding up again.

@cardibach You do like splitting hairs! The highway code doesn’t mention your shoulder. In common language it does mean looking further back than sideways. It’s, in effect, checking behind you!

There is a video that explains it better than me as he demonstrates driving. Basically - the blind spot is minimal ad in less than a second as you start seeing them with your peripheral vision when they are in the lane next to you.

this is about changing lanes where you are both likely to move at the similar speed. If you keep safe distance they will absolutely be nowhere near your blind spot when changing lanes and one and a time. If you are changing lanes you won’t be doing the same speed. If they are in your blind spot 1. How can you see them sitting there gor ages and 2. Why would you change lanes - they are too close and this makes no sense. Are you driving a van? Or a large vehicle then fair enough but for a car?

In a three lane motorway your blindspot is not in the right lane immediate to you but the one further to the right.

this does not apply when moving off from stationary.

Which you can do without turning your head right round.

OP is a very good driver, better than her family member at any rate. Now that has been established we can all go home. What a pointless baity thread

I drive a van a lot, which has bigger blind spots than a car. I always check out the window by turning my head, but also, on the motorway, adjust your speed slightly (not abruptly) before switching lanes. This allows anything that’s creeping into a blind spot that you might miss in a larger vehicle either come forward so you can see it out the window or drift back so you can see it in the mirror.

I actually think driving safely on the motorway needs a good knowledge of what’s going on behind you. Weaving idiots (just let them out of the way don’t get involved), emergency vehicles etc. if you are keeping up with regular mirror checks when maintaining your lane then blind spot check can be even quicker (but still should always be done IMO). You can see if vehicles are quickly gaining on you, don’t pull out in front of them if you aren’t willing to at least be close to their speed, just let them go then move out. Causing braking on the motorway causes queues and ripple effects.

Remember you can be found ‘not at fault’ for an incident but still display terrible roadcraft that means if you’d been better the incident could have been avoided, and it’s better to wait a little or just back off the accelerator for a few seconds than have to deal with an insurance write off or worse.

Absolutely nothing to do with me trying to pretend I’m an amazing driver. I even admitted upthread my own personal near miss whilst changing lanes on a motorway. Blind spot checks are a basic part of driving safety that an alarming amount of people seem to forget/not understand - how is that in the slightest bit ‘baitey’.

Having a personal issue with a safety measure is just bizarre.

Exactly. I think people are mistaking ‘over the shoulder’ for turning to look back at the rear passengers! I glance sideways over my shoulder at a 90 degree angle, giving me visibility of the back of the driver side window and eliminating that blind spot. It really isn’t complicated