Don’t end up counting costs of winter motoring

THE Road Safety Authority (RSA) issued advice to motorists on getting ready for bad weather as far back as September but an unusually mild autumn made it easy to put the suggestions on the long finger, writes Grainne McGuinness. 

Winter has arrived with a vengeance around Ireland in recent days however, and any drivers who haven’t checked over their vehicles should make it a priority.

The safety of the driver, their passengers, and other road users is reason enough but there can also be a heavy financial cost to being unprepared for poor weather. The AA calculate the annual cost of tyres, repairs, and servicing of a family car at more than €1,000 per year but a breakdown can push this up dramatically and the number of winter breakdowns occurring on Irish roads has increased by 17% over the past two years.