What should you do when you see brake lights ahead of you?

• A. Increase speed to pass.
• B. Stay at the same distance and ignore.
• C. Slow down, maintain a safe following distance, and be prepared to stop.
• D. Move into another lane and continue.

Answer: (C)

Seeing brake lights ahead means the driver in front is slowing or stopping. The safest response is to slow down, increase your following distance, and be prepared to stop. So ease off the accelerator, create more space behind the car ahead (aim for about a three-second gap, more in rain or low visibility), and stay alert to brake lights, signals from other vehicles, and pedestrians. This gives you enough time to react smoothly and avoid a rear-end collision. The other options either speed up to try to pass a slowing vehicle, ignore the warning, or switch lanes in a way that could surprise or endanger other drivers, all of which increase crash risk.