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Irish Mirror

Lifestyle

Sophie Collins

How to avoid car accidents in the snow - from high gears to sunglasses

Sun Ireland

Some parts of Ireland are due to be battered with snow, sleet and rain this week as temperatures dip down to a wintry -4C.

There are warnings in place across many counties as hazardous conditions are expected to develop over the coming days.

Experts are warning drivers in Ireland to be cautious while on the roads as accidents are much more prevalent in these conditions.

To help navigate challenging roads, cold weather driving experts from Iceland, Lotus Car Rental, have outlined nine common mistakes people must avoid when driving in the snow.

Plan your route in advance

Even before you step outside of your front door there are a few things you can do to make your journey a lot easier and planning your route ahead of time is one of them.

If you’re driving locally try to avoid any roads that may be more exposed to the elements as they’re likely to be treacherous.

For longer journeys stick to main routes where possible as these are more likely to be well-gritted.

Finally, allow for the journey to take more time than usual because rushing will only lead to you making mistakes on the road.

Correcting skids

If your car starts to spin or skid in the snow the most important thing you can do is keep your hands firmly on the wheel and steer your car in the direction of the skid.

Try not to correct it by jerking the wheel or braking too hard as the car may respond by spinning even further out of control.

If you are at immediate risk of crashing into something then you can brake but do this as gently as possible.

Wear sunglasses

It may sound like a strange point when you’ve spent 10 minutes getting dressed in your warmer layers but sunglasses help to reduce the glare of low winter sun on the snow.

Sunglasses will drastically improve your visibility on the road so be sure to have them with you even in the snowiest of conditions.

Drive in a higher gear

How to avoid car accidents in the snow - from high gears to sunglasses (Getty Images)

One of the most important changes you must make to your driving habits had to do with your gears.

While it’s common practice to pull off in first gear this should be avoided in the snow as travelling in low gears dramatically increases the risk of you spinning and skidding.

Instead, move off in second gear and carefully change up to a higher gear as soon as the car moves.

Once in a high gear, aim to keep your revs low as this will help to prevent your wheels from spinning over icy road surfaces. Ideally, changing gear should be avoided as much as possible.

Use the correct lights

When driving in heavy snow make sure that you use your dipped headlights. Relying on daytime running lights will not be enough because they don’t always put lights on the back of your car.

If your visibility drops below 100m it’s important that you put your fog lights on immediately.

Remember to turn them off again when the visibility improves otherwise you’re at risk of dazzling other road users.

Reducing the pressure in your tyres

A common myth many people believe is that reducing tyre pressure will increase the grip you have in the snow but that is simply not true.

As car tyres are designed to function at a particular pressure, deflating them can actually reduce the control you have when driving on snow and ice.

Keeping your tyres pumped up should therefore be a key priority not least because they’re more likely to deflate in cold and wintry conditions.

This is because cold air is more dense than warm air so when the temperature drops, your tyre pressure will drop with it.

Try and make a habit out of checking your tyre pressure every couple of weeks, especially over the winter period as temperatures remain low.

Failure to do this could lead to an €80 fine and up to four points on your licence.

Being unprepared for emergencies

If you haven’t already packed your car with essential items in case your vehicle breaks down or you’re involved in a crash then it’s even more important to do so when it snows.

Remember when driving in the snow you should keep your speed down and leave more distance between you and the car in front – as much as 10 times more than is usually recommended.

In case of emergencies, here’s a checklist of essential items to keep in your car: