As a full-time working mother, I drive myself everyday to work. Picking up baby Bing to and from the babysitter usually falls within my daily responsibility too. Being a mother of 2 lovely boys, you would have thought I'm a pretty cautious driver. But I must admit this is not always the case :p
I have had my fair share of speeding tickets on the highway for instance. Having had a close friend who just had her car declared as total loss due to skidding, I now know better than to play around with the speed limit. I also have my moments of showing attitudes to other drivers sometimes after a terrible day especially when confronted by someone with poor road etiquette but I have learnt that it doesn't pay to retaliate. Instead I let the mat rempits and tail gaters pass.
Image courtesy of EZtakaful
Besides adhering to speed limits, mobile use and texting while driving has become one of the devils. Being a doctor, sometimes there's no off time. From fellow doctors, nurses to allied health, one gets called all the time. And it can become tempting to pick it up while driving. Therefore I have learnt to use Bluetooth earphones while driving.
The other common danger is fatigue. After experiencing microsleep on the highway at full throttle, now I always make sure I'm well rested before the start of the journey. For trips longer than 1-2 hours, I'll stop and rest be it a quick toilet break or just a way out for some fresh air. Now that the R&R pitstops are equipped with clean and spacious bathrooms as well as many food choices, baby Bing loves to stop by too. Making sure our tired toddler gets enough sleep and fastened in his car seat also ensures a peaceful drive. One main problem for Malaysian families - letting young children loose without car seat! Can't stress how much this can save your children's life in an accident. There's no such thing as children refusing to stay in car seat because as with everything else it comes with habit and discipline.
Being a safe driver is not only important to both the drivers and her passengers, but it's also a civil responsibility. Now that the motor insurance is liberalised, there's even more incentive to drive safely! The following diagram from Bank Negara Malaysia sums up the benefits to consumers. Those who have low risk profiles i.e. no accidents and who maintains their car well get to pay lower premiums. That's definitely great news and beneficial incentive for Malaysian drivers.
To read more on how you can benefit from the liberalisation of motor insurance/motor Takaful, kindly refer to