To park or not to park…
It’s a known fact that for most people, owning a vehicle is the second most expensive item you’ll own in your lifetime, besides a house of course. We tend to look after our house by doing maintenance and cleaning it. We wouldn’t do anything that would cause intentional damage to our house, so why would we do that to our vehicle?
There will be times that we’ll take that little extra chance and do something that we know is wrong, especially when it involves the safe keeping of our vehicle. But why take that chance? I’ve seen people double park on a busy road. That is, they’ll park beside another parked vehicle because there wasn’t an empty spot close by. Isn’t that just asking for someone to sideswipe their vehicle?
Take a look at the two vehicles parked at the end of this row. The first one (the blue car) isn’t parked in a spot at all. It’s in an area that will help protect the vehicle beside it from drivers entering that aisle. It gives drivers room to maneuver their vehicle from another aisle or entrance. However, that didn’t stop the driver of the blue car from parking there.
Now, the driver of the black car was the worst. They decided they were above everyone else and decided to park in the aisle. If a driver to the left of the photo had to back out of their parking space and didn’t do a good job at it, they’ll most certainly back into the side of the black car. Common sense has to be used when you’re parking.
I analyze drivers from a national company when they have a vehicle crash. I let them know what they should have done differently and recommend specific training for each driver involved in the incident. When we analyzed each type of incident from this company a few years ago, over 20% involved parked vehicles. Considering all of the different types of crashes they could have been involved in, this number was quite high.
Think before you park. If the parking lot is full, go somewhere else. Even if it means that you’ll have to walk a little further to your destination, park in a safe place. Avoid parking in aisles, in the middle of a road or on a corner. Think about what damage your vehicle could receive from other drivers before leaving it in that place. It may save your vehicle from damage and save you money, time and stress.
Who is at fault if you hit a car parked in the aisle? This happens all the time at the GO lot that I park in. Not hitting a car… parking in the aisle.