What is the primary purpose of a shoulder check?

The primary purpose of a shoulder check is to check your blind spot. When driving, there are areas around your vehicle that are not visible through your mirrors, known as blind spots. A shoulder check involves turning your head to look over your shoulder, allowing you to see if there are any vehicles or obstacles in these areas before making a maneuver, such as changing lanes or merging into traffic. This action significantly enhances safety by ensuring that the driver is aware of the full surroundings, thus preventing potential collisions with vehicles that may be approaching from the sides and are not reflected in the mirrors.

While adjusting your seat is important for overall visibility and comfort when driving, it does not directly relate to the shoulder check. Similarly, although checking if it's safe to change lanes is a crucial part of driving, this specific action is achieved by looking in your mirrors and doing a shoulder check specifically for blind spots. Monitoring traffic in front of you is also vital, but it does not address the need to check areas that are not visible in your mirrors.