It’s happened. Whether a dead battery, a skid into the ditch or an engine blowout, you and your vehicle are now roadside and in need of some assistance.

Luckily, Guy’s Towing Service is there to help solve the issue be it a simple fill-up or a tow. Of course, depending on where you are in relation to the truck this could take some time. However, there are still plenty of things to do besides asking for the name and license plate number of your tow truck driver. Here are some safety tips—updated from our last post—so that you can be prepared once the cavalry arrives this summer.

Move Off The Road

The first thing to do in any accident is move off to the side of the road. The shoulder, small or large, is your best bet to remove your vehicle from the flow of traffic and keep you and any passengers safe. A great many hit and runs don’t occur on normal roads or city streets, but on America’s busiest highways.

Turn On Your Hazard Lights

While moving to the roadside, turn on your hazard lights. The hazard lights button should be a triangular icon on your center console. Even if it were just a stop to adjust mirrors, return an important phone call or for a situation far more serious, driving is all about information.

Giving other people that information is key to keeping safe on the road. It let’s them know to drive slow and give your car space. It also gives the tow truck driver a visual indication of which car has an issue. If nothing else, it is the first safety measure a stranded driver can perform in the event of an accident or inconvenience.

Set Up Your Safety Equipment

Every car should have some standard safety equipment: reflective triangles and flares should be some of them. When the flow of traffic is clear, find a safe spot to place down these pieces of materiel at least 100 steps away from the back end of the car. This should give other drivers plenty of heads-up that something is up, especially on a busy highway.

If you can, try to enter and exit on the passenger-side door and stay as far away from traffic as possible. Roughly 40 tow truck drivers die roadside per year as of 2016. It is imperative that you stay safe while setting up safety equipment.

Call Your Insurance Company

If in an accident or collision, call your insurance and inform them of what happened. Be sure to mention what happened, if there were any witnesses and the name of the tow truck service you called. They can help you file important documents, make a claim and find the nearest repair shop in your insurance network.

Gather Your Personal Belongings

If your vehicle is in an unusable state, it’s high time to start collecting personal items and possessions inside your car. Even if auto repair services can fix the damage, it might take some time before the automobile is operable again. Keeping your valuable items in one place will give you peace of mind that no matter what happens next, all of your is ready to move.

Stay With Your Car

In the event of a minor accident, major collision, or vehicle breakdown, do not leave your car. Stay inside your car once all other precautions have been taken. Waiting for roadside assistance on a busy road or highway is a dangerous position. It’s a situation that will transform from an inconvenience into a roadside emergency if an errant, reckless driver were to stray too far to the right.

Moreover, do not accept any rides from strangers. The stranded driver can be an easy target for those with bad intentions, ready to take advantage of people. It’s also an unnecessary risk; your towing truck will take you where you need to go.

So don’t sweat about a ride, you already phoned for one.

In need of a tow? Call Guy’s Towing Service

Since 1971, Guy’s Towing Service has served the state of Louisiana with a quality befitting the best tow truck company in the nation. It’s not our goal to be the biggest, only the best. To that end we offer everything from heavy-duty towing to simple roadside assistance. In need of a tow? Call Guy’s today and our professional staff will dispatch right away.