10 Safe Driving Tips for 2025

As we step into a new year, it’s a perfect time to reflect on our goals and resolutions. Many of us focus on self-improvement—whether that means getting in better shape, spending more time with family, or learning new skills—but what about improving our driving habits? Safer driving not only protects you but also helps safeguard your loved ones and everyone on the road. This year consider making a commitment to safer driving with resolutions that can have a lasting impact.

NHTSA encourages you to start the new year with a commitment to these 10 important safety goals:

Buckle Up. Every Trip, Every Time 

Wearing your seat belt can save your life and reduce the risk of injuries if you’re in a crash. Always place the shoulder belt across the middle of your chest and away from your neck, and place the lap belt across your hips, not your stomach. You should never put the shoulder belt behind your back or under your arm. Misuse can have dangerous consequences. If you have passengers, make sure everyone is properly buckled before hitting the road. Remember: Buckle Up. Every Trip. Every Time.

Ensure Children Are in the Right Seat

It’s important to choose the right seat, install it correctly, use it every time your child is in the car, and know when it’s safe to transition to another type of car seat or seat belt. NHTSA can help you through the process with car seat recommendations based on your child’s age and size, detailed car seat installation instructions, and finding a car seat inspection station to have a certified technician check your work. NHTSA also offers seat belt safety tips for tweens. Remember that the back seat is the safest place for children under 13.

Drive Sober

Driving while impaired is a dangerous, deadly crime. In every state, it’s illegal to drive impaired by any substance—alcohol or other drugs, whether legal or illegal. Being a responsible driver is simple: if you’re impaired, do not drive. Instead, plan ahead and arrange a safe ride home before the event. You can schedule a rideshare or taxi, call a sober friend, or use public transportation to get home safely. If you’re hosting an event where alcohol will be served, make sure all guests leave with a sober driver and don’t hesitate to stop someone from getting behind the wheel after drinking.

Pay Attention to the Road

Distracted driving includes talking or texting on your phone, eating and drinking, talking to people in your vehicle, adjusting the stereo, entertainment, or navigation system—anything that takes your attention away from the task of safe driving. Texting or holding a cell phone to talk is illegal in many states. Remember that driving safely always requires your full attention.

Obey Speed Limits

Speeding puts you, your passengers, and all the people you share the road with in unnecessary danger. Speeding also increases the risk for more severe injuries in a crash. Remember that speed affects your safety even when you’re driving the speed limit but too fast for road conditions, such as in bad weather, at dawn or dusk, at night, or through a construction zone.

Never Drive Drowsy

Making sure you get enough sleep daily is the best way to protect yourself against the dangers of drowsy driving. If you take medications, make sure to understand how they may affect your ability to drive safely and adjust your schedule or arrange for alternative transportation if necessary. If you must drive during the peak sleepiness periods (midnight to 6 a.m. and late afternoon), be alert for signs of drowsiness, such as driving over roadway lines or rumble strips.

Share the Road Responsibly

Be mindful that you share the road with not only other motorists, but also motorcyclists, bicyclists, and pedestrians. Learn about the safety challenges motorcyclists face because of their size and visibility and motorcycle riding practices like downshifting and weaving to know how to anticipate and respond to them. Make sure to give bicyclists enough room on the road, yield to them as you would other motorists, and don’t underestimate their speed. Always be on the lookout for pedestrians and use extra caution when driving in hard-to-see conditions.

Pay Attention to Flashing Lights

If you see a vehicle with flashing lights stopped on a highway, move over into a lane not adjacent to the vehicle. If moving over isn’t safe, slow down. All 50 states have Move Over laws to protect law enforcement officers, emergency responders and other roadside workers. Flashing lights also include watching out for school buses in neighborhoods and communities. If a school bus has its yellow lights flashing, you must slow down and prepare to stop. If the bus’s red lights are flashing and its stop-arm is extended, you must come to a full stop and wait until the bus’s flashing lights turn off and the bus begins moving again. It’s illegal to speed up and pass a bus as it slows to a stop with its yellow lights flashing or is stopped with its red lights flashing. Even when a bus doesn’t have flashing lights, take extra care to look out for children.

Talk to Teen Drivers

If you have a teen driver, remind them to always wear their seat belts, obey speed limits, put away their phone and limit the number of people they allow to ride with them to reduce distractions. Remember that you have more influence on your teen than you may think, so be a good role model and get and stay involved in your teen’s driving habits.

Check for Recalls

You should check for vehicle safety recalls at least twice a year—time it with other household safety checks at the beginning and end of Daylight Saving Time. There are many ways to check for recalls: You can visit NHTSA.gov/Recalls and enter your vehicle’s license plate or VIN. You can sign up for email alerts that will notify you if your vehicle is affected by a future safety recall. You can also download NHTSA’s SaferCar app, enter and store your vehicle’s information in the virtual garage, and let the app automatically send you a notification if there’s a recall. If a vehicle does have a recall, contact the automaker’s local dealership to schedule a free recall repair. Make sure to also search for recalls related to other vehicle equipment such as car seats and tires.

A Safer 2025 Starts with You

Making these simple but important resolutions can save lives and prevent injuries. Start 2025 with a focus on safety and make your new year’s resolutions count—not just for you, but also for everyone who shares the road with you.

If you think your vehicle or equipment may have a safety defect, reporting it to NHTSA is an important first step to take to get the situation remedied and make our roads safer. You can do this at NHTSA.gov/Recalls or by calling NHTSA’s Vehicle Safety Hotline at 888-327-4236, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET.