What Is An ACCIDENT PREVENTION COURSE?

An accident prevention course puts an emphasis on preparing you for real-life driving situations, vehicle maintenance, route planning, and freeway driving. It’s often viewed as a great foundation in preparing for a lifetime of safe driving throughout the class 7N and class 5 licensing stages.

The qualities of the best accident prevention course are:

• Help to choose your first vehicle
• Parking
• Highway & freeway driving
• Route planning and giving directions
• Introduction to basic vehicle maintenance (tire inflation, checking and replacing oil & fluid levels, etc.)
• Preparing for a successful class 5 road test, after the class 7N stage

The Benefits of an Accident Prevention Course

The most important day of driving is not always the road test! The most important day is the day after the road test as it is the first day of driving alone, with no supervisor.  It's tempting for new drivers to jump behind the wheel, drive over to a friend's house and invite them into the car.  It's easy to get caught up in the excitement of having no supervisor telling you what to do or when to do it, but it's important to remember that without that extra set of eyes - you run the risk of missing something. Taking advantage of formal driving lessons and/or an online learning course to brush up on your skills and will prepare you for a lifetime of safe driving.

Get Familiar With Navigation

Once drivers obtain their new licence, they will inevitably travel outside of familiar areas. The best learning experiences from a strong accident prevention course will be when your instructors provide simulated GPS activities to promote less reliance on electronic maps. It’s important to know how to find location bearings based on your surroundings, how to understand the important road signs, as well as the reasoning and differences behind Avenues, Streets and Roads.

Being comfortable with basic navigation skills helps ensure you are less distracted while on the road.

Picking Your New Ride

Getting some help in learning what vehicles a new driver can legally drive and what vehicle may be a good choice as a first purchase are great foundations to build confidence. There are a lot of options for new drivers when it comes to purchasing their first set of wheels, so weighing the pros & cons of a new vs used vehicle, and the associated costs including maintenance and insurance rates is valuable.

Being comfortable in what you drive is essential to staying safe and taking a formal course to get help and test this out in a controlled environment can help a lot. Remember - class 7L & class 7N drivers cannot use hand-held or hands-free devices, which includes GPS navigation, so being able to safely navigate to your destination without the use of electronics, is key.

Vehicle Maintenance

Accident prevention courses typically introduce basic vehicle maintenance and discuss how to check washer fluid, oil, and other car fluids. The differences between summer and winter fluids, such as coolant and windshield washer fluid. How & when to replace these fluids are more important than you would think. Do you know how to change a flat or the difference between summer and winter tires?

Accident prevention starts with checking for warning signs and maintaining a safe ride for you and your passengers.

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All of these components come together and provide a course curriculum that offers the chance to learn advanced driving scenarios in a safe and controlled environment. Many of these scenarios are developed to simulate how to respond in emergencies like hydroplaning or a blown tire and can be beneficial for both new and experienced drivers when it comes to accident prevention.

*GST and ICBC fees are not included in our Car Training pricing