If you're like most proud parents, you're going to be experiencing a bittersweet mixture of satisfaction, joy, and apprehension as your child takes that first step toward full-fledged adulthood when she drives away from your home toward her first year of college. You're undoubtedly brimming with hope for her future and are confident that you raised her well — but at the same time, you're worried about various mishaps that young adults may not handle well due to lack of experience. For instance, you've probably always taken care of her vehicle needs, such as making sure the car gets proper oil changes, kicking the tires occasionally to ensure they're safe, and keeping a sharp eye out for any malfunctions concerning the brakes or other standard fixtures that may result in serious safety hazards if left neglected.  However, you won't be able to do those things once she's gone off to college except for during short visits home.  

You may feel as if getting her one last tune-up, oil change, and perhaps a change of tires before she leaves is all that you can do, but fortunately, there are a few other safety measures you can take in order to increase your peace of mind and help keep her as safe as possible as she explores life outside the nest. Following are just three of the many things that you can do to help ensure her optimal safety while behind the wheel of her car. 

Get Triple-A

A Triple-A membership will provide your college student with immediate access to roadside assistance from local service providers in the event she experiences a vehicle breakdown. To make things even more convenient, Triple-A now has an app that makes it easier than ever to contact someone for assistance, and this can make all the difference in stressful situations, such as having car trouble in an unfamiliar environment. As an added bonus, Triple-A also has an insurance program that offers discounts of as much as 30% for students who are away at school — and as you probably already know, vehicle insurance for young adults can be quite expensive. 

Get Real Maps 

Although your child is a member of a generation that grew up with digital technology, there are times when the old-school tools can be lifesavers under the right circumstances. For instance, if she's a nature lover who tends to go on weekend wilderness adventures, make sure she understands that GPS units often provide faulty readings in remote areas, so be sure to provide her with good, comprehensive paper maps of the area that she can tuck away in her glove compartment. Furthermore, Wi-Fi access is still relatively difficult to find in many of the more remote areas of the country. If she's the type who loves to fill her car with friends and supplies and take off on spontaneous weekend road trips, paper maps can come in handy in the case she loses Wi-Fi access. 

Put the Name of a Local Locksmith in Her Smartphone 

You've undoubtedly drilled into her head that she should always lock her vehicle when she gets out of her car, and by now, it probably comes automatically to her. Although this is a great safety precaution for college students, it also increases the chances of her becoming locked out of her car, which can pose quite a safety hazard if it occurs in the wrong time and place. For instance, if she gets a part-time job in a restaurant to help pay for college costs, she may be having to drive home after the sun goes down. Before she leaves for college, research local locksmiths in her college town, choose the best one, and put their contact information into her smartphone. This way, she won't be scrambling for a locksmith on a dark, rainy night when she finds herself locked out of her car. 

For more information about this, reach out to an auto locksmith today.