Are you getting as much added benefit as you could from your vehicle's anti-lock brake system? Understanding just a few key points about these popular safety features 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 the anti-lock braking systems 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 roads. ABS does the pumping for you. ABS uses electronic controls to maintain wheel rotation under hard braking that would otherwise lock a vehicle's wheels. Keeping the wheels rotating increases the vehicle's steering and braking, 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."

Provided as a public service by the Highway Loss Data Institute