If you’re heading off to grandma’s house this year for Thanksgiving, keep in mind you’re not alone. Plenty of people will be clogging the roads on their way to meet friends and family and enjoy their own version of holiday dinner, just like you.

Unfortunately, many of those same people will drink to excess, then attempt to drive back home at the end of the day, endangering themselves and everyone around them in the process—including YOU!

Some will even begin drinking early in the day, and will keep others from arriving at the Thanksgiving table at all.

Alcohol-impaired driving represents one of our nation’s most-frequently committed and deadly crimes, especially during the holiday season. And because this is a crime whose results are often deadly, it’s important to learn how to recognize a drunken driver by his actions on the road.

To spot drunken drivers and stay out of their path, watch for these warning signs an impaired driver may be at the wheel:

• Driving at unreasonably slow, fast or inconsistent speeds
• Changing lanes frequently
• Swerving while passing
• Making unusually wide turns
• Driving at night with no headlights
• Slow or no response to traffic signals or stop signs
• Driving in opposing lanes, or the wrong way on a one-way street
• Driving too close to curbs, shoulders or the center line

If a driver exhibits these behaviors, avoid confrontation. Follow from a safe distance, take down the license plate number and vehicle description, and pull over and report the driver using 9-1-1.

Hopefully, you’ll arrive wherever you’re going safely this year. You might even have a hand in saving someone’s life!

Driving with kids in the car can get hectic. When it’s nap time, the kids are screaming and fighting and you need to run errands, it’s hard to get things done and meet your kids’ needs, too.

But our kids are our life. So when it’s time to climb in the car, boost them into their car seats and buckle them in, we want to know they’ll be safe and secure, whether we’re making a mad dash for the post office or trying to cross three trips off our errand list at once.

So let me pose this question: Are you confident you’re buckling your kids up right? Do you know the proper positioning for a 3-year-old versus a 12-year-old?

And what about car seats? When is it safe to move your child from a child safety seat to a booster seat? Or to the regular car seat, where he or she can buckle up with the same safety belts you use?

If you’re confused about forward- versus rear-facing safety seats, or you can’t make heads or tails of that brand new car seat you just bought and are trying to install in your SUV, there’s good news: You’re not alone. Research by GMAC Insurance shows that more than a third of parents don’t know how to properly buckle their kids up either.

I remember when my daughter was young. Back then, the experts said it was OK for infants to ride up front with mom and dad, as long as they were buckled tight and facing the back seat. So that’s where my daughter rode. It did make shoving a bottle or her pacifier in her mouth while driving much easier—but I had no idea it was putting her life at risk.

It seems safety guidelines for this kind of thing change every few years. So if you’re still not sure where to buckle your kids, or when to move them into a different type of car seat, ask your insurance company what their guidelines say, read our article on the subject, or check with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which compares child safety and booster seats to help you choose the best one for your needs.

You love your kids, so don’t risk their lives unknowingly when buckling them in for a car trip. Find out how to use those safety seats and seat belts properly so everyone can return home safely.

Back in August, we discussed something here on the insurance blog that proved a passionate topic for many: the cost of insuring dangerous dog breeds.

Now, I know how much we all love our dogs. But I was surprised at the reaction I got from that post, emotions ranging from anger against ‘discrimination’ to understanding and agreement on why some breeds of dog cost more to insure than others.

I’d like to reopen that discussion now, as I’ve been reading more on the insurance debate and the actual statistics associated with insuring against dog bite lately.

For instance, did you know that dogs cause approximately $1 billion in medical and insurance losses annually? Or that one-third of all homeowners claims involve dog bites?

Are those numbers as staggering to you as they are to me?

Insurers apparently think so. In fact, some are now choosing not to insure more dangerous dog breeds at all, while others are placing limits on coverage within each household.

On the one hand, that’s difficult to deal with if you’re the owner of a “problem dog.” On the other hand, if you live next door to one and it bites your kid’s finger off, you likely have a little different perspective on the matter.

So what does it cost to buy liability coverage for that ferocious Rottweiler, Doberman or German Shepherd?

Well, you can usually get about $100,000 worth of coverage for $700 to $1,000 per year. But many experts recommend buying three times that much coverage, just in case Fido decides to take a finger off and little Suzy has to have it reattached.

OK, so that’s a bit gross. But you get the idea: you can never be too careful around some dogs, just like I doubt you can ever buy too much liability insurance to cover them.

So read the latest stats from the CDC and others in our article, Dangerous Dogs Pose Insurance Debate, and let us know what you think. It may or may not change your opinion on the matter.