What should a driver do when driving on the left side of a large vehicle to avoid the blind spot?

Published 9 April 2021
Last updated 12 April 2021

What are blind spots and how do they affect your driving? In this blog, we look at how to check your blind spots when you're moving off and when you're on the move.

Think about this: you’re driving along on the motorway, keeping a good separation distance from the vehicles ahead of you, when you decide to speed up and overtake the lorry in front. You follow your usual procedure and check your mirrors before you signal to move out. As you start to make your manoeuvre, you hear a loud engine roar from a car travelling at speed in the lane to your right. You hastily return to the lane you were in and maintain your position until you feel confident enough to try again.

At this point, you might be saying to yourself, ‘Why did that happen?’ You followed the rules and yet you only managed to stop yourself from making a potentially dangerous decision at the last moment. The answer is that the other vehicle was in your blind spot.

What are blind spots?

A blind spot is an area that cannot be seen either when you’re looking ahead or when you’re checking your mirrors. The main blind spots are

• the area between what you see as you look forward and what you see in your exterior mirror
• the area obscured by the bodywork of your vehicle when you look in your mirrors. Vehicles of different shapes have different blind spots – for example, those caused by window pillars and head restraints.

Checking blind spots

Blind spots are just as likely to affect drivers who want to move off from a stationary position as drivers who are actually moving. In both cases, it’s essential for your safety, and that of other road users, to make some additional checks before you decide to take any action.

Moving off 

• Check in your mirrors for activity behind you, then look around over your right shoulder before you move off. In some cases, it may help to wind down the window so you can get a better view.
• Some vehicles have ‘assistive technology’ such as reverse-assist alarms. These devices might help reduce blind spots, but they will not remove them entirely. Always use your mirrors and glance over your shoulder before you commit to any decisions. 

On the move

• Blind spots on the move are on either side of your vehicle. Do not look around to check for them – you’ll take your focus away from the road in front of you, with potentially dangerous consequences.
• Regular and sensible use of your mirrors will keep you up to date with what’s happening behind. But you’ll still need to check your blind spots to gather as much information as possible before you make certain manoeuvres. You should take a quick sideways glance

1. before you change lanes
2. before you join a motorway or dual carriageway from a slip road
3. when traffic is merging from the left or the right.

• You should also recognise where other drivers’ blind spots will be and avoid remaining in them longer than necessary.

So there you have it: blind spots are only dangerous if you’re blind to their consequences … (Sorry!)

For more information about blind spots, mirrors and hazards, visit the Safe Driving for Life shop and pick up a copy of The Official DVSA Guide to Driving – the essential skills.

Most road crashes with other vehicles occur because one or both of the drivers involved did not see the other vehicle in time to take appropriate action. There are five rules for using your eyes more effectively and efficiently.

Rules of Observation (for looking)

1. Aim High in Steering
Look well ahead when driving your vehicle. Steer the vehicle using your lower fringe vision. Look in the direction you want the vehicle to go, especially in bends and corners.

2. Keep Your Eyes Moving
Don't fix your eyes on any single object for more than about 2 seconds. Keep moving your eyes from object to object otherwise danger could threaten your vehicle from another source without you being aware of it.

3. Get the Big Picture
By moving your eyes, you are able to check the far distance, the middle distance and the near distance directly in front. In addition the mirror should be checked on average at least once every 10 to 12 seconds. This constant checking ensures that the driver is fully aware of everything that is going on around the vehicle.

4. Leave yourself an 'out'
When driving, always have a plan of 'escape' should the traffic conditions quickly change. If a vehicle is tailgating,leave more space in front of your vehicle as this reduces your braking requirements. Offset your vehicle where possible to the vehicle travelling alongside. This allows space for other vehicles to 'escape' if they should swerve suddenly.

5. Make Sure Other Drivers See You  
Look at the faces of other drivers to see if they are looking at you. Get eye contact with those other drivers. Use your signals in plenty of time so they are clearly understood. Position your vehicle in such a way to clearly show your intention (eg. when turning left). Where possible do not travel in blind spot areas of other vehicles. (When you are approaching from behind, if you can see the eyes of other drivers in their mirror they have a better chance of seeing you.)

6. Keep a Look Out for Bicycle Riders

The law requires all drivers to allow a minimum of 1 metre clearance, 1.5 metres if travelling over 60 km/h, when passing bicycle riders.

When you park on the side of a road, before opening the car door, look behind and over your right shoulder to check for bicycle riders.

One way to do this is to open the car door with your left hand, this is known as the Dutch Reach.

The Rules of Observation should be used in conjunction with the System of Car Control. Identification of hazards, checking for cross traffic at the appropriate time, use of mirrors and blind spot checking in the appropriate situations are examples of conforming to the Rules of Observation. Remember, when approaching danger (any hazard) keep slowing the vehicle until you can see clearly that it is safe to go before selecting the appropriate gear to proceed.

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Vehicle blind spots blot out regions of the road much larger than most people realise. These are areas that the driver cannot see by using a mirror and in some cases, looking directly.

There are certain design elements of a vehicle’s design which impact the size of blind spots such as the windscreen frames (known as A-pillar or B-pillar), windows and headrests.

A 2011 RACV study found “in some vehicles tested, a pedestrian or cyclist as close as nine metres away and a vehicle 20 metres away couldn’t be seen by the driver because the design of the vehicle created a side blind spot.”

Blind spots can be eliminated by the driver conducting a simple head-check before turning or changing lanes.   

Slowing appropriately while checking all mirrors carefully also reduces the possibility of a blind spot obscuring a other vulnerable road users such as people riding bikes, pedestrians and even motorbikes. 

There are regions of the road around trucks and large vehicles that the driver cannot see by looking directly or using a mirror. 

Large vehicles, such as trucks, tourist coaches and buses, are a challenge for people who ride bikes because they take up so much room on the road.

Specifically, large vehicles occupy the space that bike riders are generally accustomed to having available to pass on the left-hand side when there isn’t a bike lane. However, when sharing the road with larger vehicles, the left side is a highly risky place to be.

The drivers of heavy vehicles are professionals and are adept at piloting their huge transporters in heavy traffic and through tight intersections. They are also hyper-aware of their length and blind spots. 

However, for all their driving prowess, they simply cannot see what their mirrors don’t show them.

The major blind spots for a large vehicle are directly behind and to the side.

• the right-hand blind spot is dangerous when overtaking: the rider must be aware that they might not be seen if the large vehicle pulls out to the right. 
• don’t move into a space in front of a truck—even if it’s a bike box—because the blind spot under the windscreen often stretches more than two metres ahead, which is enough to hide you.
• the left-hand blind spot is the greatest risk to the bike riders. When a large vehicle begins to turn, the ample alley down the inside closes up where the trailing wheels of a longer vehicle cut in tight to the curb. Side mirrors also become less effective.

With blind spots as large as they are, it’s important that bike riders assume they haven’t been seen—even if they are technically in the right—and stay well back to allow the large vehicle to make its turn.

Many freight and construction companies have recognised the risks of sharing the road with bikes and are making improvements to their fleets’ large-vehicle mirrors, vision aids and side under-run protection rails. 

However, people who ride bikes need to be aware of the extent of the blind spots of these vehicles and ride defensively.

BIKE RIDERS 

• Assume that drivers haven’t seen you.
• Do not pull up on the left side of a large vehicle.
• If the truck comes alongside you, resist the urge to shrink into the gutter because that actually makes you less visible.
• Do not overtake a turning large vehicle.
• If a large vehicle turns in front of you, take evasive action by escaping onto the footpath.

DRIVERS

• Turn your head to check blind spots before turning and merging.
• Move your head to see around window frames when scanning on approach to an intersection.
• Make turns slowly, being ready to stop if necessary, while making multiple, careful checks of the side mirrors.