As you grow older, your ability to drive safely can become a topic of conversation. But what about your car? As much as your own physical and cognitive capacities affect your risks, so does car safety. How do you know if a car is safe to drive?
That’s a question always worth asking. And it’s particularly poignant today, Friday 26 May, because it’s ‘Fatality Free Friday’ as designated by the Australian Road Safety Foundation (ARSF).
The Fatality Free Friday campaign was first launched in 2007. Its core aim is to go one day without a death on the road, thus demonstrating that it can be achieved every day of the year.
How can we achieve that aim?
On ABC talkback radio recently, the topic of driver ability came up. It’s one that tends to bob up every now and then. Often it will be in response to an accident involving an older driver making news headlines.
Now that I’m hurtling towards my 60s, I’m starting to become more aware of these debates when they pop up. Some callers suggest driving tests every so many years once a person reaches a certain age.
While I’m not necessarily opposed to that idea, it mightn’t be a bad idea to remove age as a factor. Remembering the early years of having my licence when I was a teenager and in my early 20s, I shudder. The speeds I drove at and risks I took were quite ridiculous, in hindsight.
I’m a much safer driver now, and will be so as long as my cognition holds up. But what about my car? It happens to be a Volvo, a brand long associated with car safety. But it also happens to be more than 20 years old. Is that a potential problem?
Your car’s make and model
Several years ago, Victoria’s Transport Accident Commission (TAC) set up a website that provides a safety score for all cars. By simply entering your car’s make, model and year you can get an idea of how safe your car is. The site is named, appropriately, HowSafeIsYourCar? and is available here.
In the case of my ageing (some would say ancient) Volvo, it rates well in the ‘Protection for Other Road Users’ category, scoring a 4 out of 5. It doesn’t do so well in the ‘Recommended Safety Features’ department, receiving a score of just 3 out of 10.
The latter is perhaps not surprising given Vincent’s age. (Yes, my car is Vincent Volvo. Doesn’t everybody name their cars?)
What can you do about car safety?
For most of us, even if HowSafeIsYourCar? rates your car quite poorly, there’s little we can do. Not many of us have the financial wherewithal to be able to upgrade our car at the drop of hat.
But that doesn’t mean there’s nothing you can do about its safety level. Even taking some basic steps can make a big difference to car safety. Perhaps the most important of those is ensuring your car is well maintained. And the best way to ensure that is by getting it serviced regularly.
A reputable mechanic will not just tune up the engine and check oil levels. They will check your car from head to toe (or bonnet to boot in this case), identifying any potential issues.
In between regular services, you can keep an eye on your tyres, making sure the tread is not worn. And you can check your lights and indicators. Grab a family member, neighbour or friend to help you with that.
And, referring back to those pesky radio talkback callers, you can ensure that you, as driver, are in good shape. Regular visits to health specialists to make sure your sight, hearing and other functions become important as you age.
Look after yourself – and your car – and you’ll have a better chance of not just driving, but living longer. And you’ll be helping make our roads fatality free every day, not just today.
Have you ever thought about how safe is your car? Did you know about ‘Fatality Free Friday’? Let us know in the comments section below.