Tag: Seattle Body Shop

Our Seattle body shop has seen people and cars miraculously survive serious collisions. Maybe you’re wondering how well your car would hold up in a wreck. Every year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) tests the safety ratings of about 92% of all passenger vehicles. These performances are posted to Safecar.gov for you to access. You can also check ratings through a separate, non-profit organization called the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). The funded safety trials and crash-test ratings are available on their website, and even include electric cars like the Nissan Leaf. Check both for the most reliable

Standards for crash-ratings are always being raised, so newer cars are becoming increasingly safer. A more resilient car means less money spent in repair costs, so take time to choose a car that can withstand a collision, should it happen.

Auto collisions affect millions of people everyday; our Seattle body shop encourages you to practice safe driving to help run the following statistics down.

• Auto collisions are the number one cause of death for adults ages 5-34 in the U.S.
• In 2009 alone, over 2.3 million adults were sent to the E.R. for collision-related injuries.
• Over 3,000 people die worldwide from car accidents each day.
• About 115 collision-related deaths occur in the U.S. each day — that’s one every 13 minutes.
• Washington State saw over 100,000 collisions in 2010, 460 of which resulted in at least one fatality.

Luckily, Washington state is seeing a downward trend for traffic collisions. Be aware of the harm you can cause with a motor vehicle, and hopefully these figures will continue to fall.

We see the aftermath of many serious collisions at our Seattle body shop, many of which could have been avoided by these safe-driving tips.

1. Check Twice. Whether you’re changing lanes, emerging from a stop sign, driving across a crosswalk, everything you do while driving should be checked twice to avoid a collision. Don’t only rely on your mirrors to check for traffic — turn your head to check blind spots.

2. Look Behind You. Give a good look behind you while backing out of a parking spot or reversing. Not everyone will immediately blow their horn, so protect yourself and others by scanning behind you.

3. Look for Pedestrians. Many pedestrians obey crosswalk rules, but the occasional jaywalker may catch you by surprise. Keep a keen eye out for crosswalks and pedestrians to avoid dangerously hitting your breaks or seriously injuring people on foot.

4. Look for an “out.” Not everyone is a safe and cautious driver, so be aware of the cars around you to reduce risk of collision. Always have an out, or a plan of diversion. This simply means preparing yourself for another driver cutting you off, slamming their brakes, or unknowingly turning into a lane you’re occupying.

We always encourage drivers to give their undivided to the road, but in the event of an accident, keep us in mind at Greenwood Auto Body in Seattle for honest and quality repairs.