Accidents happen. Chances are you will be in at least one accident in your life. This can be one of the most stressful situations, especially if you don’t know what to do after it happens. Whether it was your fault, or the other driver’s, it’s important to know what steps to take following an accident.

1. Check to make sure everyone is OK. When in doubt call an ambulance.

2. If the accident was minor, move your car to a safe place off the road and away from traffic.

3. Turn on your hazards and place cones, triangles, or warning flares around for safety.

4. Call the police, even in the event of a minor accident.

5. Be polite but avoid discussing the accident with the other driver and never admit fault or say “I’m sorry”. Discussing the accident with the other driver could lead to a dispute and saying “I’m sorry” can be used against you in court. Limit your discussion to police and your insurance agent.

6. Gather information. Get the name, address, phone number, email address, make, model, year of the car, license plate number, insurance carrier, and insurance policy number of the other driver(s) involved. If the name on the auto registration is different than the driver, make note of the relationship.

7. Take photos and notes of of the accident including damages to all vehicles involved, witness information, etc.

8. Notify your insurance agent as soon as possible.

Information for this post was found via State Farm and Cars.com.

For more automotive tips head over the Tips Section of our blog. You can also learn more about American Guardian Warranty and our reputation here.

For those of you residing in Illinois, a new seat belt law will take effect in the new year.

The new legislation requires all passengers in the back seat to wear seat belts. Previously, backseat passengers over the age of 19 were exempt but with a stronger focus on automobile safety, that has changed. In 2010, 38 back seat passengers who were not wearing seat belts died in crashes in Illinois.

Marva Boyd, chief of staff for IDOT, says that unbelted passengers pose a danger to everyone inside the vehicle, “There have been incidents where passengers have been projected from vehicles, have been bounced around, and unfortunately sometimes when that happens, they can create other injuries or fatalities”. – WJBC

The new legislation starts January 1, 2012. Fines for violating this new law start at $25.

For more automotive tips and news visit the American Guardian Warranty Blog or read about our reputation here.

Hybrid cars get their name from the two or more power sources that put the vehicle in motion. If your auto is powered by a good ol’ internal combustion engine, you may be under the impression that there’s not a whole lot you can do to drive greener. Not the case!

Here are five ways you can reduce your carbon footprint in any car. In most cases, you’ll be saving some greenbacks as well.

Read the rest of this entry »

Just like an infant, dogs should be safely secured in a car. Fido might want to stick his head out of the window, but keeping him safe should be your #1 priority.

Even accidents at low speeds can cause injuries to your dog because of the various protuberances inside of a car. These structures can cause broken ribs, legs, and eye damage. An unrestrained dog also has the possibility of being crushed by a deployed airbag, thrown against the windshield, or thrown outside of the car.

Going back to Fido wanting to stick his head out of the window; this in itself is extremely dangerous. Airborne debris can put your dog at risk of injury to their eyes, nose, ears, mouth and face. Sticking their head out the window also puts them at more of a risk if an accident were to occur.

Another good reason you should secure your dog is your own safety. Let’s face it, even the most well-trained dogs can get restless at times. They might jump from seat to seat, distracting you in the process or a large dog can hinder your view. One of the worst things you can do is keep your dog on your lap while driving. This can interfere with driving and the dog can jump down into the footwell.

Nearly a third of the 1,000 dog-owning drivers admitted that they had been distracted by their dogs in a 2010 survey by the AAA. Owning a small dog doesn’t get you off the hook either. Officials from the AAA also say that a 10-pound dog would strike at 50 times its weight in a crash at 50 mph.

What You Should Do

Your safest bet is to secure your dog in a harness and seatbelt inside the vehicle. What about securing your dog in a crate? This is a better option than leaving the dog unrestrained, however in a serious accident your dog still has the possibility of being thrown against the side of the crate.

Do yourself, and your dog a favor, and secure them inside your vehicle with a harness & seatbelt.

Information from this post was found on Edmunds. You can read the article in its entirety here. Also be sure to check out more of our tips and learn about our A+ rating with the BBB.

After buying a car, whether it’s new or used, you need to do routine maintenance checks. One good reason for routine maintenance is that failure to conduct them will result in denied claims on your service agreement. But the main reason to do these routine maintenance checks, is for your safety and your car’s safety.

We’ll focus on oil changes, tire rotations, and tire pressure today. Check back soon for more posts about other necessary routine maintenances.

Oil Change

Check your owner’s manual to see how frequently you need to get your oil changed. It usually ranges from 3-5 months or 3,000-5,000 miles. So why do you need to get oil changes? The oil is what helps lubricate your engine and its parts. This helps reduce friction which in turn reduces wear and tear.

Oil also helps to keep your car’s engine from overheating. The less friction the parts cause, the less heat is produced. The oil also helps transfer heat from hotter areas to cooler areas.

The oil helps carry away debris and particles to the filter. These particles can be things like water & acid that contain burnt gasoline. The particles have the potential to damage exposed areas of the engine, if the oil isn’t able to disburse them.

Tire Rotation

What exactly is a tire rotation? This is the process of moving your cars tires from one position on the car to another. The reason for rotating tires is to ensure even wear. Uneven tire wear is caused by a variety of things. For one, most cars are designed with engines in the front. This puts more weight on the front two tires creating more wear on them. Other things, such as turning, also determines how much wear is caused on a specific tire.

The reason you want even tire wear is so that your car continues to perform consistently. It also extends the life of the set of tires. Check your owner’s manual to see how frequently you are recommended to get your tires rotated.

Tire Pressure

Tire pressure is crucial when it comes to your safety. An incorrect tire pressure can affect your car’s ability to corner, brake, and remain stable. It can also lead to tire failure. If your tire pressure is too high, than not enough of your tire touches the ground. This makes for a bumpy ride as well as a ride with less traction. If tire pressure is too low, than too much of your tire is touching the ground. This creates more friction between the ground and your tire, causing increased wear and possible overheating of the tire.

Correct tire pressure also affects your comfort, improves fuel economy, reduces emissions, and lengthens the tire’s lifespan. So keep in mind that tire pressure can not only save you money and the environment, but it can also save your life.

For more great automotive tips check out the Tips Section on our blog. Information for this post was found through ATV Connection, Suite 101, Wikipedia, and Cars.com.

It’s bound to happen to you or someone you know. The aggravating sound of your car attempting to start, but falling just short (or the aggravating sound of your friend calling you to drive 50 miles to help them jump start their car). Even though it’s a pretty common occurrence, jump starting a car is not the easiest of tasks if you don’t know what you’re doing. So to help you learn what to do, we put together this blog with instructions for jump starting a car.

To get started, line up both cars so that the batteries are as close as possible. Make sure both cars are off (one should already be off due to the whole dead battery predicament) and not touching each other. Headlights, blinkers, radios, and A/C should all be off. Unplug anything such as cell phones, GPS, or radar detectors. Jump starting a car sends 300+ volts through your car and could damage anything that is plugged in.

If the battery is cracked and liquid is leaking, do not proceed! If it’s defected or broken in any way, it’s time to buy a new battery. If you try to jump start a cracked/leaking battery, it could explode. If the battery is in good condition, try to clean off any corrosion that might be found around the dead battery’s terminals.

Now we’ll move onto connecting the cables. The positive cable is usually red/orange and the negative cable is usually black, but check to be sure. Your battery’s positive and negative terminals should be clearly marked:

1. Attach the end of the positive (+) cable to the positive (+) post of the dead battery.
2. Connect the other end of the positive (+) cable to the positive (+) post of the good battery.
3. Connect one end of the negative (-) cable to the negative (-) post of the good battery.
4. Attach the other end of the negative (-) cable to a good shiny, non-painted metal part of the engine on the dead car (most metal bolts/nuts will do as long as they are not attached to the battery). When you attach this cable (referred to as ‘Grounding’) you’ll get a normal spark as the circuit is completed.
5. Now that your cables are attached, it’s time to start the engines. Turn on the car with the good battery and leave it running. Turn the key in the dead car and it should start right up! In newer models with key immobilizers, you have to turn the key to the “run” position for 30 seconds before trying to start the car.

It’s important to follow these steps exactly. Doing them in a different order could potentially cause unwanted sparking.

You can disconnect the jumper cables right away. Disconnecting the cables should be done in the reverse order of how you attached them. Don’t let the black & red cables touch each other at the end when they are still connected to one battery. You also want to avoid laying cables over fans or belt areas.

Make sure you memorize these steps and use caution so that the next time you (or that pesky friend) tries to jump start a dead car, you’ll know what to do. If you’re a visual learner, you can check out the video below that follows the same steps to jump a car. Any vehicle service contract holders should contact their Roadside Assistance Providers, as they will be able to send a technician to provided the needed jump start. This is just one of the many benefits of being a vehicle service contract owner.

Sources:
carbuyingtips.com – How To Jump Start a Car
about.com – How To Jump Start a Car Using Jumper Cables

Before we start, a quick word: It’s probably in your best interest to follow your automobile manufacturer’s gasoline recommendation. Also, fuel purchased from better-known brands has a tendency to be of higher quality, with detergents that improve vehicle performance and reduce possible contaminants from damaging system components.

When you head to the gas station to fill up, you usually see three different options for gas. You have the regular unleaded, medium grade, and premium. So what’s the difference between these grades and should you be using premium?

To make it really simple check your owner’s manual. If it states that you should use regular, then definitely use regular. Premium gas provides no benefits to a car that was designed to run on regular gas. So save yourself some money and just go with regular. Read the rest of this entry »

Whether it’s your daily commute or an early start on a family trip, chances are you have probably driven while fatigued. A recent study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety reports that 41% of drivers surveyed have fallen asleep or nodded off behind the wheel. The study surveyed 2,000 U.S. residents who were 16 years-old and above. It is probably safe to say that the results would be similar even if the survey was extended to the entire U.S. population. With that being said, here are some facts & myths about drowsy driving that can help you in the future. Read the rest of this entry »

You’re driving down a lonely road (or a busy highway), when your car starts puttering to a slow roll. There’s no “check engine” light and there isn’t smoke coming from under the hood of your car. What could it be? Oh, right. You forgot to fill up on gas. Just because it’s easy for something like this to slip your mind doesn’t mean the situation is any easier.

There are certain steps you should take in the unfortunate event that your car runs out of gas in the middle of your drive. Read the rest of this entry »

Information for this article was taken from an article in How Stuff Works. To read the full HSW article, click here.

Brakes are an automobile component that we’re guilty of taking for granted. When traffic is slowing, we assume pressing the brake pedal will cause the thousands of pounds of moving steel we’re commanding to come to a halt. From that perspective, it’s incredible cars are able to stop when we want them to as consistently as they do.

We won’t go into the vast importance of having healthy, working brakes. Instead, we’ll point out a few warning signs that it might be time to bring your car in for a brake check-up.

1. Worn Brake Pads

Most vehicles stop with the aid of disc brakes, which function much like the brakes on bicycles. Over time, the consistent friction needed to cause the car to stop wears down the brake pads. So how do you know if it’s time to get them replaced? How Stuff Works says this one is a simple eye test: Read the rest of this entry »