Tips for Staying Safe on the Roads in Winter

A mud covered SUV tries to negotiate a very muddy dirt road.

I consider myself to be a fairly confident driver.  However, driving in the winter can be worrying due to possible snow and icy road conditions, especially when being faced with black ice which can be sneaky and dangerous to all drivers. The problem is that when I had my driving lessons, I never had to learn to drive in such conditions and therefore had no experience or practice of wintry weather driving. And I am sure this is the case for the majority of new drivers on the road too.   

I did bump my car quite badly one time on black ice, and the worse thing is there was nothing I could do to prevent the accident because it was not until I drove onto the black ice that I realised there was any there!  The only way I could avoid the on coming taxi was to swerve slightly and in doing so I hit a parked car! Therefore, damaging my car too – thank goodness for car insurance! Back then when I had that mini collision, I was not a parent, and I have to be honest, I would be even more worried now if I were out in the early mornings on the school run, and there was black ice on the roads as I would have Burton and Jenson in the back of the car.

That is why it is crucial to have measures in place to safeguard your car from wintry weather conditions as much as you can.

Here are some top tips for ensuring your car is as safe as possible, including some ideas that other bloggers implement during the winter:

  • Check that you have correctly fitted tyres on your car because cold weather causes the rubber on tyres to harden, which ultimately reduces grip. Therefore, it is essential to have cold weather tyres fitted because they are specifically designed to reduce the impact of this hardening, maintaining good grip. 
  • Make sure your engine has been topped up with anti freeze, because this keeps the water in your radiator and engine from freezing in cold temps.
  • I prod my husband to make sure oil is topped up etc and also myself make sure basics like washer fluid and fuel are ok for longer journeys. We also have winter tyres that we put on each year which are brilliant for driving on ice and snow. Penny
  • Make sure you have blankets, first aid kit, a shovel and warning warning light cones (can’t remember the name of them) in the boot.Also food, water and phone charger whenever you travel. Aly
  • We have an emergency car bag in the boot of ours which has everything we need in case we break down somewhere. Cass

These are only a few safety measures you can do, but a start at least. What tips do you have ? 

Please stay safe and drive carefully this winter.

This post has been written in collaboration with LV car insurance who are urging us to drive safely this winter. For more tips and advice please check out their  #CarCareClub on twitter. They sent me a fantastic car care kit which is now in the boot of my car, in case of emergency.

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