The importance of checking your blindspots

The blindspot is an area that you can’t see in your mirrors.

There is a blind spot to both the right and left hand sides of your vehicle which are also known as your offside blindspot and nearside blindspot.

The offside of your vehicle is the part of your vehicle which is furthest away from the kerb.

The nearside of your vehicle is the part of your vehicle which is closest to the kerb.

There are two main ways to check your blindspots:

When stationary

If you are stationary and moving off from the left hand side of the road, you would check your centre mirror (pause) then your right wing mirror and then look over your right shoulder before moving off. You are looking for any other vehicle or road user that may be coming towards you from behind that you haven't been able to see in your mirrors.

If another road user is coming towards you from behind once they have passed your vehicle you should recheck your mirrors and blindspot again before moving off to make sure that it is safe to do so.

When on the move

It is important to point out that the blindspot moves with you on the move.

E.g. if you are driving on a road with lanes and want to change to the right lane, you would check your centre mirror (pause) then your right wing mirror and then have a quick side glance to the right no more than ninety degrees.

If you change lanes without checking the appropriate blindspot first you could drive into another vehicle or other road user who is positioned in your blindspot area.

Always remember

• When on the move never look over your shoulder whilst driving as you may accidentally steer your vehicle in the direction in which you are looking.
• When on the move it is important to emphasize that you should have no more than a quick ninety degree shoulder glance before changing lane.
• Sometimes you may need more than one quick shoulder glance when changing lane if you are unsure of the position of another vehicle or road user around you.
• Try not to drive in another vehicles blindspot area as they may drive into you if they are not use to checking their blindspots before changing lanes.

Manchester Driver training offers a changing lanes course which incorporates checking your blindspots on the move.