Check Blind Spots 

 

When moving off, you must always make sure that it's clear and safe.This is one thing that your driving instructor will stress time and time again during your driving lessons.
 
As you sit in the driving seat you can see clearly to the front, and when you use your mirrors you can see most of what's behind; but there will be some areas around the car that need special attention - areas that you can't see clearly. These are the blind spots.

Blind spots

A blind spot is an are area that can't be seen in your mirrors or that is masked by parts of the car's structure. An example of a blind spit causes by the car's stucture would be the front windscreen pillars - these can mask a distant object such as a motorcycle at a junction - with this in mind you must always take special care to compensate for blind spots by moving in your seat when neccessary in order to get a good view.
 
When moving off, the blind spots behind your left and right shoulders are critical
 
For example, if you look at the diagram on the right you can see that the blue car that emerging from the junction would not be visible in the mirrors of the red car - if the driver of the red car were to move off without seeing it there could easily be an accident.
 
To compensate for this blindspot, you need to check over your right shoulder before moving off from the left-hand side of the road.
 
Remember that this information is not only essential for safety during your driving lessons - it is absolutely essential for safe driving and a full no-claim insurance bonus after you pass the driving test.