Virily Editor
You’ve met someone new. Now what? Before you dream about gaining a Netflix and chill partner and strolling, hand-in-hand through meadows on quirky, passionate dates, you need to think about safety.
You may think to yourself: I will know if I meet a psycho or a cheater (or something in between)—I have good intuition. But will you know? It never hurts to be cautious and check up on a potential date even if you think you have a good feeling! And if they are the one, you can laugh about how you performed a dating background check years into your marriage, right?
Don’t forget that your life matters more than going on a date. Let’s take a look at the five dating safety rules that could help save your life!
1. Let your friends and family know about your date
Whether your date is a buddy of another buddy of another buddy, a first-time in-person Tinder meet-up, or your best-friend-turned-lover, it’s essential to inform your loved ones about your whereabouts. Your date may not be sketchy, but you may end up going somewhere sketchy, which can get messy and scary.
You can’t predict the future, so do your best to keep your friends and family up to date! Even if you switch locations, let your friends know. Before you go out, you should give your loved ones this information:
- Your partner’s name and number
- If you have a picture, show them a photo
- If you know where your date works, let your friends know
- If you get in their car, snap a quick photo of their license plate and send it out, but try to avoid getting in their car in the first place
We’re not through yet! This last point brings us to safety dating rule number two. Are you ready for it? Let’s go.
2. Don’t get in a car with your date
Even if you trust your date, stay away from their car! They could charm you, make you laugh, and innocently flirt with you in a public, restaurant setting, but they may be putting up an act. You never know where they’ll take you.
Of course, drifting into the dark, stormy woods is probably the worst-case scenario. But it’s still good to avoid getting in the car on the first few dates until you trust your potential partner. Let’s take a look at more realistic reasons why you want to avoid sitting in your date’s passenger side:
- Your date won’t learn your home address—and that could get messy if they turn out to be weird stalkers
- Getting in a car takes you away from a public space (see safety dating tip number 4)
- Letting your date pick you up means that it may get awkward trying to escape
You may be thinking: there’s nothing romantic about this. And that’s right. It’s essential to be super cautious so the romance can be worthwhile, long lasting, and anything but toxic!
3. Research your new date online before meeting up
It never hurts to check up on a potential date before getting together, especially if you met them online. Thankfully, nowadays, you can scour social media. Some profiles may be more open than others, giving you a chance to see glimpses of your date’s family and friend life. You can also Google their name! Everything helps. But what if you can’t find them on social media?
You can take it one step further and perform a dating background check. How to do a background check on someone you are dating? Let’s find out:
Check out Nuwber for a quick, reliable background check—it shows addresses, brushes with the law, and phone numbers, and more. Not in America? You can search which websites will share information within your country. For example, you can check out 192.com in the UK to find out simple data about another person. It helps to know as much information as possible to send to your friends and family or to make a judgment call!
4. Go somewhere public on your first few dates
Have you only communicated with your date online? Go somewhere public on your first few dates. Have you only met your date on a drunken night at a club? Go somewhere public on your first few dates! Why?
You don’t know the person! Even if you performed a dating background check, stalked their social media, let your friends and family know your whereabouts, go somewhere public. If the date goes horribly wrong, you can choose to leave—in your own car or via taxi, Uber, etc. You have the choice to walk away, but if you’re alone in their house, it may be harder to escape.
Yes, you read that right.
Okay, there’s one more tip!
5. Meet up with your friends on your date
Ask your date if it’s okay to go on a double date or to tag alongside your friends (try to include both genders). Why? Well, since you may be in la-la love land, your friends will likely make a better judgment call on your date. They may be able to spot obvious deal-breakers before it’s too late! And that’s what friends are for, right?
Well, there you have it, five dating safety rules that could save your life! Before you get lost in first-date, honeymoon-phase daydreams, you need to:
- Inform your friends and family about your date
- Drive your own car or take another means of transport—don’t get into their vehicle
- Research your new date online and perform a dating background check
- Go to a pub, restaurant, or coffee shop for your first date—don’t go to their house or somewhere private
- Ask your date if it’s okay if your friends tag along
Your life matters more than meeting up with someone who you don’t know!
