The most common cause of accidents is a lack of space between vehicles, usually caused by excessive speed (5 m.p.h. can be too fast in some situations). 

You owe it to yourself and your passengers to keep a safe gap between you and the car ahead at all times.

If you are ever behind the wheel, or in the passenger seat and your view to the front is something like that in the picture on the right ... It's only a matter of time before the crash ... (See 'Too Close' below)

The easiest way to judge a safe gap is to use the 'two-second rule'. In wet weather or on poor road surfaces you should double this gap. Remember that two seconds is a minimum gap, the longer the gap, the bigger your safety margin.

Look around and you will notice that many drivers neglect to leave a sufficient gap, especially in poor weather conditions - read the news and watch TV and you will see stories about accidents in which people are killed. Coincidence?

Too close?

Try holding your hand about two inches in front of your eyes and consider what you can see directly in front of you (No! not while you are driving!!). Now, keeping your hand in front and in line with your eyes, gradually move it away and notice how your view of the world in front is changing. 

If you now apply the same principle to large vehicles you will find that by keeping well back you have a wider field of view ahead (this is one of the reasons that drivers are advised to leave a 'two chevron' gap on specially marked sections of motorways).

Quite often, drivers who follow too close to large vehicles miss opportunities to overtake simply because they can't see far enough ahead. By keeping well back you will be in a much safer position to overtake and as a result of this, you will probably complete your journey quicker.