DO IT WITH CONFIDENCE

Many motorists are fortunate enough that they will go through their driving life with as little as a carpark ding. Yet for those who experience a bigger prang, it can be an unpleasant shock. This covers all the key steps you should take, or consider, for three different accident scenarios – single-car, multi-car and animals – as well as helpful guidance on how to initiate a claim with your insurance company.

As a professional driver and automotive expert, you'd think Sydney parent Tim Robson would be better placed than most when it came to teaching his daughter to drive.

After all, having spent years piloting exotic and expensive metal around Australia's racetracks at the kinds of speeds that would make an autobahn blush, preparing his 21-year-old daughter for her Provisional driving test on quiet, suburban roads should have been a breeze by comparison. So imagine his surprise when it proved to be just the opposite.

While common sense is key to avoiding many household hazards, it's sometimes easy to overlook the less obvious dangers that can also put lives and property at risk.

But thanks to some simple safety precautions, experts say we can easily combat a range of hidden perils.

We all know that taking time to unwind is beneficial for health and happiness, but in practice, leaving scheduled time for relaxation often ends up at the bottom of the priority list.

Many of us sacrifice relaxing, even though we know that stress can -- if experienced for prolonged periods -- put us at risk of developing myriad physical and mental health concerns.

So, for the sake of your health and well-being, below are seven inspiring -- and scientifically proven -- benefits of relaxation for the body and mind.

More often than not, we're very quick to lay claim to the positive traits our parents passed on. Someone comments on your lovely complexion -- "Oh my Mum's always had the most amazing skin, I get it from her." But what about the other less visible, more complex, characteristics that have filtered through the family tree.

Can our bloodline be responsible for our bad moods and does stress run in the family? Trying to figure out our D-N-A isn't as easy as A–B-C, but with a little help from the professionals, it's possible to learn a lot about the legacy of your lineage.

With summer fast approaching and the threat of bushfires intensifying, there's no time like the present to implement some simple yet highly effective life-saving precautions.

According to Inspector Ben Shepherd from Rural Fire Service NSW, an easy first step is to reduce the amount of potential fuel surrounding or over-hanging your house.

If there's a finer place on the planet than Australia during our sultry, salty summer, we're yet to find it. Even our coldest states (we're looking at you, Tasmania) have thawed and the sun is shining brilliant bright across the country.

And summer in Australia can only mean one thing: it's roadtrip season, and millions of us load up our cars and head north (or south, or anywhere) in search of quiet beaches or unspoiled campsites where we can while away the balmy evenings with a barbecue and a backyard cricket set.

While virtually impossible to render a modern home completely fire-safe, experts say that mitigating existing risks is key to survival in an emergency.

And with contemporary house fires typically burning faster and at higher intensities than in previous decades, diligent pre-planning can make all the difference.