Overview

• Motoring experts at Dick Lovett, using Department for Transport data, report that 25% of drivers do not keep even the minimum two‑second following distance.
• The two‑second guideline sets a baseline for safe spacing, with advice to extend to four seconds in rain and up to ten times the gap in ice or snow.
• Calculations show that losing one second equates to just over 31 metres at 70mph, or more than seven car lengths, with distance per second scaling by speed.
• Drivers are advised to pick a fixed roadside marker and count ‘one‑thousand‑and‑one, one‑thousand‑and‑two’; passing the marker before finishing indicates the gap is too short.
• Experts say insufficient spacing heightens crash risk if the vehicle ahead brakes suddenly, urging motorists to reassess their following distances.