BERLIN: It is a pretty simple logic: The better adjusted the car mirrors are to the driver's line of vision, the better their ability to see.

But how do we know if we are setting the mirrors correctly? While all cars will have a blind spot - an area next to the vehicle that is not visible to the driver through their mirrors - it is possible to reduce the size of this area.

To do so, motorists, when adjusting their mirrors, should lean their heads as close as possible to the window when setting the left-hand mirror, advises German safety certifier TUV Sud.

The driver should then put the mirror out so far that their own vehicle is not visible in the wing mirror.

For the right-hand mirror, "we have to lean towards the passenger side, beyond the middle axis of the car, and then turn the mirror," says Vincenzo Luca from TUV Sud.

The mirror then must be pushed out so far so that that only the road, and not the vehicle, can be seen. Even after setting the mirrors correctly, the blind spot can still cause serious accidents, especially with cyclists.

Most commonly, when motorists are performing a right turn, cyclists can often be overlooked and collided with "because this area next to the vehicle can be difficult or impossible to see, depending on the car model," says Luca.

To combat this, Luca reminds drivers to always look over their shoulder before completing the manoeuvre "as it improves the all-round view."

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