Are you getting as much benefit as you could from your vehicle's airbag or antilock brake system (ABS)? Understanding a few key points about these popular safety technologies may reduce the injuries that you and your passengers receive during a collision. A study by the Highway Loss Data Institute found that many drivers don't know how to use their ABS to reduce the frequency or the costs of vehicle collisions resulting in insurance claims.

Before the development of ABS, drivers were taught to "pump" their brakes, especially on wet, icy, or other slippery road conditions. What makes ABS significant is that it does the pumping for you. ABS uses electronic controls to maintain wheel rotation when braking hard -- a situation that might otherwise lock a vehicle's wheels. Keeping the wheels rotating increases the steering and braking ability, especially when tire/roadway friction is reduced, such as when the pavement is wet.

"Do not pump the brakes -- pumping the brakes discards all the benefits of ABS," says Dr. Leonard Evans, principal research scientist at General Motors. "The way to avoid traffic crashes is to drive carefully and allow generous safety margins, so that you avoid situations requiring hard or emergency braking. However, if you are in a situation calling for emergency braking, and your vehicle has ABS, apply firm, steady pressure to the brake pedal, and continue to apply it until the emergency is resolved. The ABS system will pump the brakes for you. This reduces the risk of your vehicle skidding out of control, and it increases your ability to steer the vehicle."

The lifesaving ability of airbags in a collision has been well documented. What many drivers might not think about is the importance of having the air-bag system serviced by properly trained professionals after it has deployed.

An air bag cannot be "repacked" after it has deployed. In fact, the air bag and many of the system's parts are not "repairable" and must be replaced. The parts are designed for each specific vehicle. For the system to function correctly if the vehicle is involved in another collision, the proper parts must be purchased and installed by a qualified technician.

If you are buying a used vehicle that has an airbag, ask if it has ever been deployed and, if so, where the system was replaced. If the air bag in your own vehicle has deployed, make sure it is replaced by qualified technicians.

Courtesy of the Car Care Council.