There are 30 million drivers in the UK, and every day, hundreds of thousands of them pour onto its motorways, making their way to work, university, dentists’ appointments, restaurants, funerals, and a thousand other essential and not-so-essential destinations. It is, therefore, crucial that if you’re going to join the motorway maelstrom, you’re equipped to handle emergencies and breakdowns.
While it’s always going to be stressful to break down in an environment at which traffic is travelling at speeds of up to 70mph, you can take note of the following steps to ensure your safety, and that of your fellow passengers.
Get to the hard shoulder
As soon as you realise that your car is in trouble, turn on your hazard lights to notify other drivers around you that something’s wrong. Then, move carefully over to the hard shoulder. Don’t make a bad situation worse by cutting in front of a speeding driver – wait until there’s space to safely move across, one lane at a time. Once at the hard shoulder, stop as far to the left as you can get, with your wheels turned in to the left.
If you can’t reach the hard shoulder
If you break down on the motorway and you have no way of getting to the hard shoulder, turn on your hazard lights straight away. If it is night-time, leave your sidelights on so your vehicle is as visible as possible. Only leave your vehicle and cross to a safe spot on the verge when it is absolutely safe to do so.
Always get out on the left hand side
As soon as you are safely stopped, you need to get yourself, and other passengers, out of the car. Always exit your vehicle from the left hand side, and leave any animals inside the car – unless you’re certain you can control them outside. If possible, wear reflective clothing when you get out in order to be as visible as possible to other road users.
If you can’t leave your car
It might be too dangerous to leave your car, or you may have small children or those with specific mobility needs who can’t get out. If this is the case, stay in the vehicle, and make sure everyone with you is safely buckled in, then phone your breakdown service and explain what has happened, and your exact location.
Don’t attempt to fix the problem
If you’re waiting on the hard shoulder for the breakdown professionals to come to the rescue for a while, don’t be tempted to attempt any repairs yourself. Trying to fix something even as simple as a flat tyre on the hard shoulder is dangerous. Stay clear of the vehicle, and the road’s edge, and wait for help to arrive.
No breakdown cover?
Don’t despair – if, for some reason, you don’t have any breakdown cover, you can still get the help you need. At the very least, keep the number of your local garage in your car – you can give them a ring if the worst happens, and they should be able to send a truck to tow it to safety, or make the repairs you need to get back underway. Just be aware, the further you are from the garage, the heftier the price of towing your vehicle.
If you’re not anywhere near your local garage, you can always get in touch with the highway agency. Again, they can tow you to safety, but you will be charged for the privilege.
Finally, if you are concerned about costs, and if it’s safe enough to do so, you can sign up for breakdown cover at the roadside. Of course, you’ll be paying more than if you were an existing customer, but having a breakdown service is fairly essential, so at least you’ll have it in place for the future.
Getting back underway
Once you’re stationary, the speed at which cars are hurtling around you suddenly comes into context. This is why it’s so important when you’re moving off the hard shoulder to wait for a significant gap in cars, signal your intentions, and look out both behind you and in your blind spot for any hazards. Build up speed on the hard shoulder, and be aware that there could be other vehicles, people, or obstacles in the way as you do so.
It’s so important to have a good level of cover if you find yourself in difficulty on the motorway. As part of our Autocare Warranty, and for six months after purchasing a car from our Value Range, we provide complimentary 24 Hour Breakdown Cover.