# What You Should Not Do When Driving a Forklift: The Most Common Driving Mistakes

1. Poor spatial awareness—even professional drivers often assume that their perception of how large or small a load actually is is accurate. To accurately gauge spatial perception, someone must be watching the forklift from the side. If the load takes up too much space, a second pair of eyes can alert the driver, because the driver may sometimes not know the size parameters. 2. Reckless driving and operation—not looking behind before reversing is a dangerous practice, and unfortunately it is also a common mistake made by many forklift operators. Looking backward when reversing is absolutely necessary, because employees may not notice a forklift speeding toward them. Driving is largely about perceiving the risks to oneself and the surrounding environment, so looking back is important. In addition, speeding or sharp turns are two other practices that can lead to disaster, so these machines must be operated with extreme care and safety. 3. Not observing the surrounding environment—unfortunately, this is also very common. In modern times, with the widespread use of handheld technology, inattention to the surrounding environment is becoming more and more common, often distracting many people, and the material handling industry is no exception. As a result, many accidents are caused by operators failing to observe their surroundings. When using any forklift, you must keep your head moving and always watch for any potential hazards and other personnel. 4. Overweight—according to experts, adding too much weight to any forklift creates many hazards. From forklift failure to operational imbalance, overloading will certainly put workers and personnel at risk. Therefore, any forklift operator must know the rated capacity of their vehicle and act cautiously when handling loads.