Increasing Driving Visibility in the Rain

driving in the rain

With fall just beginning, that means that there may or may not be rain heading our way. in fact, it was drizzling a little bit on my way into work earlier this week. and since moving to Southern California and working for an auto accident attorney, I wanted to take some time to talk about increasing visibility on the road when it’s raining. There have been times where I have driven in the rain at nighttime and my visibility was drastically decreased. Below, I have put together some helpful tools for you to be able to increase your driving visibility in the rain. If you have been injured in an accident, contact a car accident lawyer today. Consultations are free!

Auto Accident Attorney | Your Wipers

When it’s raining, you want to make sure that you have windshield wipers that are working. Most vehicles allow you to manually set the speed. There is no criteria for determining what speed you use when driving in the rain. It usually has something to do with how hard it is raining or how fast you are going. If you have a rear windshield wiper, you can activate that one as well.

Changing Old Wipers

If your windshield wipers are old or brittle, make sure you are changing them out. the wipers consist of two parts:

  • the rubber wiper – which is what swipes across the windshield;
  • the metal blade – the part that holds the wiper

You want to check your wipers regularly for stiffness and cracks. You’ll especially want to do this if you live in areas where there isn’t as much rain. Most wiper inserts need to be changed every one to three years in order to improve visibility. Not only when it rains, but if your windshield is dirty and your wipers need replacing, the wipers can permanently scratch your windshield.

  • your owner’s manual will be able to instruct you insofar as the type and size of the blades you need;
  • if you usually park outside, you will want to replace your wipers more often than if you were to park in the garage;
  • wiper blades can easily be unsnapped from the metal arm that holds the blade in order to replace it with a new one;
  • keep wiper blades clean
    • dirty windshield wipers can cause streaking and water beading. to clean your wiper blades, soak a lint-free cloth or paper towel in windshield wiper fluid and use the cloth to wipe along the length of the blades.

Car Accident Lawyer | Your Headlights

Most newer model cars have sensors on them when it is raining and your headlights will automatically turn on. at least mine do. However, if yours do not and you find yourself driving in the rain or its overcast, turning on your headlights will help increase visibility. Even if you are driving during the day and it is raining out, make sure your headlights are on. It is actually the law in California to have your headlights on when you are driving in the rain.

  • headlights have different settings – make sure you are choosing the correct setting for the existing road conditions
    • ex: when I was driving on a back-road highway in South Dakota, it was raining and dark out and there were minimal highway lights. So I chose to drive with my brights on;
  • if you are driving through fog and rain, use your fog lights

If you have an automatic setting on your car, I highly recommend using it. With the new technology, more and more cars have headlight sensors that are incredibly useful.

How to Clean Headlights

Keeping your headlights clean is important when it comes to visibility in the rain. If your headlights are dirty, they are not going to shine as brightly as they should. to keep your headlights bright, clean them as often as you can. Whether you do this on your own or when you take your car to be washed.

There is no schedule when it comes to washing your headlights. If your headlights appear to lose their brightness in the evening, give them a wash.

  • scrub your headlights with sandpaper
    • for a deep clean, soak a piece of sandpaper in cold water;
    • apply painters taps around the perimeter of your headlights;
    • wait 10 minutes and the lightly sand the headlights in a side to side motion;
    • spray headlights with water as you work
  • alternate the direction of your scrubbing each time
    • if you used side to side once, use and up and down method next time;
  • when the discoloration, dirt, and scratches disappear, move on to next level of sandpaper
    • you want to start with 1000 grit and go up to 1500, then 2000, then 2500, then finally 3000 grit

Additional Safety Precautions

There are a few other things that an auto accident attorney in our office suggests that you do to increase visibility while driving in the rain. Those include the following:

  • don’t follow too closely to trucks or buses
    • the spray from these larger vehicles will make it more difficult to see when you are driving. Give yourself adequate room
    • if you need to pass do so quickly so you minimize the time you spend beside or behind them;
  • slow down
    • I know most people in Southern California are fine with this, but this is also for safety reasons
      • slowing down will give you more time to stop in case there is something unexpected coming up;

Injured? Contact An Auto Accident Attorney Today!

If you have been injured in an accident, contact us to discuss your case. Every car accident lawyer in our office has years of experience working with those who have been injured due to the negligent actions of another. We also know how insurance adjusters work. and we will never back down when they are being unfair. Contact our office to speak to a car accident lawyer today! Consultations are free!