What Are the Dangers of RADAR Detectors?
Many people, particularly those who do a lot of driving, use radar detectors to avoid speeding tickets. Most radar detectors beep when a police cruiser using radar is in the vicinity, warning drivers to slow down. Some can detect the distance between your car and a police radar gun. Others claim to send out signals preventing radar guns from reading the car's speed.
Other People Are Reading
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Danger to Self
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Drivers with radar detectors may feel overconfident that they can avoid a speeding ticket and speed excessively. This can result in loss of control and crashes, particularly during rain and other inclement weather. Additionally, a speeder may not see a vehicle stalled on the road just beyond a bend until it is too late.
Danger to Others
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Similarly, traveling too fast may prevent a driver from stopping in time to avoid hitting a child or pet that has run into the street, or workers in the middle of the road. Speeders may think they are the only ones at risk but this is not the case.
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Danger of Illegal Use
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Many states have banned the use of radar detectors in an effort to get drivers to obey speed limits. Drivers in those states who continue using detectors not only risk a hefty speeding fine, but additional consequences for illegal use of a radar detector.
Danger of Malfunction
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Many newer radar detectors can alert drivers of approaching high-speed emergency vehicles and upcoming road hazards. However, the radar detector market is full of cheap knockoffs that can malfunction. This means overconfident drivers may not pay adequate attention to their surroundings and risk a collision. In addition, consumers who believe their radar detectors will make their speeds invisible to radar guns may be in for a surprise. New radar gun technology can override the jamming signals sent out by some older radar detectors.
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References
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