Brooksville Senior Citizen Car Accidents

Car Accident Lawyers Of Lowman Law Firm Care About Our Senior Motorists

At Lowman Law Firm in Brooksville, we are concerned with the safety of all drivers.  Inevitably, one of the issues which will come to the fore of safe motoring is age.  As is the case when we are young, when we get older we must come to terms that age sometimes affects our driving.  That’s sometimes!  Age doesn’t automatically mean we can no longer operate a motor vehicle with proficiency.  But it’s normal that our driving abilities change.  The key is to understand how age affects driving skills.

Everyone ages differently.  However, older adults more frequently receive citations and get into automobile accidents than younger drivers. In fact, fatal crash rates rise sharply after a driver has reached the age of 70.

As we age, factors such as vision, hearing, or motor reflexes, all subject to aging, may become a problem.  You may have a chronic condition that gradually worsens with time, or you may have to adjust to a sudden change, such as a stroke.

All of our lives we have valued the privilege of driving.  So as we advance into our golden years, it’s understandably a sensitive situation when we begin to question our father’s and mother’s driving skills.  

Avoid Automobile Accidents In Brooksville:  Things For Seniors To Watch For

• Pain or stiffness in your neck can make it harder to look over your shoulder to change lanes or look left and right at intersections to check for other traffic or pedestrians.
• Leg pain can make it difficult to move your foot from the gas to the brake pedal.
• Diminished arm strength can make it hard to turn the steering wheel quickly and effectively.
• As reaction times also slow down with age, you may be slower to spot vehicles emerging from side streets and driveways, or to realize that the vehicle ahead of you has slowed or stopped.
• Keeping track of so many road signs, signals, and markings, as well as all the other traffic and pedestrians, can also become more difficult as we lose the ability to effectively divide our attention between multiple activities.

Tips For Seniors:  Stay Atop Your Health To Avoid Car Accidents

• Get your eyes checked every year. Make sure your corrective lenses are current and keep any obstructions or visual impediments away from windows and mirrors.
• Have your hearing checked annually.
• Discuss any side effects of meds with your doctors and communicate those with your loved ones.  
• Getting plenty of sleep is essential to driving well.

The Traffic Accident Lawyers at Lowman Law Firm encourage driving well into our golden years, but also support safe driving for everyone’s safety, including yours.