Winter Driving: Keeping safe on the road with Asda Finance
How to cope with tough winter conditions on the road
Poor winter driving conditions are as inevitable as wet summers, yet every year drivers seem to struggle with the harsh weather, and particularly the lack of daylight. With the clocks now set to winter time, dark mornings can mean hazardous driving for the bleary-eyed.
Not only is it harder on the car – breakdowns are more commonplace in the winter months – but tougher on the driver too, with the combination of gloomy skies and bright headlights. However, a little planning and forethought can go a long way to keeping you safe.
What should I keep in my car?
Before you even set off, it’s crucial to ensure that you and your car are ready for the worst case scenario. Put together a collection of kit that you can keep in the boot ready for any eventuality. This should include:
- A sleeping bag or blanket for keeping warm
- A torch with fresh batteries
- A large bottle of water
- A shovel
- A large bar of chocolate or some dried food with a high sugar content (flapjack for example)
- A warning triangle
Even if the roads are dry this equipment may be useful if there is an accident, but if there is rain, ice or snow on the roads, your kit will prove invaluable.
How can I prepare my car for the winter?
Dark conditions mean much less visual information to work with, so make sure your car is prepared to maximise visibility. Even if you can’t be bothered to keep the whole car clean, clean windows all round are vital – particularly the windscreen. Also spend time cleaning the lights: headlights, fog lights, brake lights, and don’t forget the side repeaters. This will help you see better and also ensure you can be seen.
A few minutes making checks will also give your car the best chance of completing the journey successfully. Check oil, water, fuel, washer fluid and brake fluid levels, and top up if necessary.
Ensure your tyres have sufficient tread depth too: although the legal limit is 1.6mm, below 3mm the amount of grip reduces dramatically - increasing stopping distances by 30% or more. Also consider fitting winter tyres, which have chunkier tread and are suited to temperatures of 7 degrees Celsius or less – higher than the average temperature in the UK last winter.
How should I drive in the winter?
Despite the tougher conditions, more accidents happen in summer rather than winter, which just shows the benefit of a more cautious approach. Reduced visibility through a combination of weather and light gives you less time to react to hazards, so reduce your speed and increase the gap between you and the car in front.
One of the most common issues with driving in the dark is being blinded by oncoming cars. As well as checking your own headlight adjustment (either by a switch on the dashboard or through a garage on older cars), you can avoid being blinded by immediately looking slightly to the left of the oncoming car. By looking to the left you will avoid the light hitting your eyes full on, but this is also the area that any hazard is most likely to come from.
Safe journey
Follow these simple guidelines and you should avoid the worst of the winter hazards. Should the worst happen, it’s important to have the assurance of good car breakdown cover and car insurance cover.
