Four Critical Safety Tips While Waiting for Emergency Towing Services at Night

Problems can arise at any time, day, or place, regardless of how well you maintain your vehicle. In particular, it can be horrifying if your car breaks down in the middle of the night. Fortunately, most professional towing services offer 24/7 assistance for stranded motorists. Nonetheless, you must keep safe as you wait for towing services.

 

You may feel terrified when you experience a car breakdown at late night hours. However, feelings of terror can lead to poor decision-making that might compromise your safety. Although you cannot control how quickly towing services arrive at your location, you can manage your safety. The following tips will make you feel secure while waiting for 24-hour towing services.

 

1. Park Off the Shoulder

When your car breaks down at night in a poorly lit area, you will naturally want to remain visible to oncoming vehicles. After all, it is safer if oncoming cars can illuminate their headlights on your vehicle for visibility. But you should never park on the road when stuck in the dark for safety reasons.

 

Visibility drops significantly at night, especially in inclement weather. Therefore, you should not assume that every motorist will notice and dodge your car. Therefore, you should park as far away from the road as possible. The best move is to direct your car to the road’s shoulder to keep clear of oncoming vehicles and prevent collisions.

 

2. Share Your Exact Location

If your car breaks down in familiar surroundings, sharing the exact location is not difficult. You can use landmarks like buildings, billboards, and street signs. However, being stranded at night in an unfamiliar area makes it challenging to share your location. Unfortunately, it can prolong the time towing services take to reach your location.

 

Modern technology has made sharing of location with towing services straightforward. For example, services such as Google Maps allow you to drop a pin in your location. The app saves the GPS coordinates of your exact position, which towing services can use to know where you are. Besides, sharing your exact locations means that a tow truck driver spends less time reaching you.

 

3. Avoid Unsolicited Rides or Tows

Some people would gladly accept unsolicited offers for rides or tows. The decision would not be a problem in a perfect world where all help was genuine. However, you should consider the adverse implications of accepting such assistance from strangers. Even if you feel terrified and need help immediately, do not fall for unsought roadside assistance, however genuine they seem.

 

Professional towing services advise motorists to avoid assistance offers from people other than the service provider you called. Instead, confidently tell good Samaritans that you have already called towing services, and they are a few minutes away, even if the ETA is inaccurate. Doing so will keep you safe as you wait.

 

4. Stay Off Phone

Waiting for towing services at night can feel lonely and boring. So naturally, motorists turn to their smartphones for entertainment. For instance, you can watch videos, play games, or even talk to a friend as you wait. Unfortunately, using your phone drains the battery fast, especially if you use power-intensive applications. Eventually, your phone will die, impairing your ability to communicate with towing services.

Unless you are in a location where you can charge your phone, you should avoid using the gadget while waiting for towing services. The precaution saves the battery so that a tow truck driver can reach you to verify your exact location. Besides, you might need your phone for other emergencies, such as communicating with your worried family.