Avoiding Collisions and After a Crash

Key points

1. To avoid a collision, drivers have three options: stop, turn or speed up.

   Source: Handbook p. 40

   “In avoiding a collision, drivers have three options: stop, turn or speed up.”
   Connecticut Driver's Manual, Handbook p. 40

2. With ABS, press the brake as hard as you can and keep pressing.

   Source: Handbook p. 40

   “Press on the brake pedal as hard as you can and keep pressing on it.”
   Connecticut Driver's Manual, Handbook p. 40

3. It is generally better to run off the road than to crash head on.

   Source: Handbook p. 40

   “Remember that it is generally better to run off the road than to crash head-on into another vehicle.”
   Connecticut Driver's Manual, Handbook p. 40

4. In a skid, stay off the brake and steer where you want the vehicle to go.

   Source: Handbook p. 40

   “Stay off the brake. Until the vehicle slows, your brakes will not work and could cause you to skid more.”
   Connecticut Driver's Manual, Handbook p. 40

5. If you are in a crash you must stop, and police must be told if anyone is hurt or killed.

   Source: Handbook p. 41

   “If you are involved in an accident, you must stop. If you are involved in an accident with a parked vehicle, you must try and locate the owner. If any person is injured or killed, the police must be notified.”
   Connecticut Driver's Manual, Handbook p. 41

6. Leaving a crash with an injury or death before police have your information is a crime.

   Source: Handbook p. 41

   “It is a crime for you to leave a crash site in which your vehicle was involved if there is an injury or death”
   Connecticut Driver's Manual, Handbook p. 41

7. Do not move the injured unless they face immediate danger such as fire.

   Source: Handbook p. 41

   “Do not move the injured unless they are in a burning vehicle or in other immediate danger of being hit by another vehicle.”
   Connecticut Driver's Manual, Handbook p. 41

8. If you hit a parked vehicle and cannot find the owner, leave a note with the date, time and how to reach you.

   Source: Handbook p. 41

   “leave a note in a place where it can be seen with the date and time of the accident and information on how the owner can reach you.”
   Connecticut Driver's Manual, Handbook p. 41

Numbers to know

3 questions from the Connecticut practice test

1. 1. When must police be notified after a Connecticut crash?

   1. Only when a vehicle cannot be driven
   2. Only on highways
   3. Whenever any person is injured or killed
   4. Never, insurers handle it
   Show answer

   Whenever any person is injured or killed. If you are involved in an accident you must stop, and if any person is injured or killed the police must be notified; leaving a crash site where someone is hurt is a crime. If you hit a parked vehicle you must try to locate the owner. Exchange license, registration and insurance information with the other drivers involved, and stay at the scene until released.

2. 2. If your vehicle breaks down on a highway, what is the safest first move when possible?

   1. Change a tire immediately in the traffic lane
   2. Leave it in the travel lane with the hood closed
   3. Stand behind it and wave at approaching vehicles
   4. Move it off the road and away from traffic
   Show answer

   Move it off the road and away from traffic. A disabled vehicle can become a collision hazard when other drivers do not see it in time. If you can, get the vehicle off the road and away from moving traffic. Then use emergency flashers and other warnings, and never stand in the roadway. Leaving the car in a travel lane is dangerous even if the hood is raised, and changing a tire in that lane exposes you to passing vehicles. Your first cue is space: create as much separation from traffic as the situation allows before handling the mechanical problem.

3. 3. What should a driver do if the vehicle begins to skid?

   1. Turn sharply opposite the intended path
   2. Lock the brakes and hold the wheel straight
   3. Stay off the brake and steer where the vehicle should go
   4. Accelerate until the tires regain grip
   Show answer

   Stay off the brake and steer where the vehicle should go. During a skid, Connecticut's manual says to stay off the brake because braking may make the skid worse before the vehicle slows. The driver should turn the wheel in the direction the vehicle is supposed to travel, then keep correcting left and right until control returns. Locking the brakes removes useful tire grip, and a sharp opposite turn can start another skid. Acceleration does not restore traction. The key cue is to make smooth steering corrections and wait for the tires to regain contact instead of adding an abrupt control input.

Source: the Connecticut Driver's Manual, Road Safety: Avoiding Collisions and Traffic Crashes. This lesson is a plain English summary, not the law itself; where it differs, the manual and the statute govern. Last checked 2026-09-27.