Getting Back on the Move - What to Do If You Break Down

At some point throughout most people's driving careers they will experience the inevitable sinking feeling when they realise that their car has died on the side of the road. Sometimes you maybe lucky and break down in a place that is convenient and keeps you out of danger on the road. Other times you may find that if you have broken down it can be difficult to stop and there is no where safe to park your car while you wait for help. If this is the case you should pull over as close to the side of the road as possible aim to cause minimal obstruction.

If you break down on a motorway try and pull onto the hard shoulder and park your car as far over to the left as possible. Remember that the hard shoulder is only for emergency use, so if you think you can make it to the next service station this would be the preferable option.

Once you have stopped you should turn your wheels to the left just in case the car moves forward, put the brakes on, leave on your side lights and switch on the hazard lights. This should make your car safe, secure and easily visible. If you need to leave the car then you should exit out of the left side and if you have a high visibility jacket you should put this on.

It is often best not to try and make even simple repairs as you could put yourself and others in danger. The best option is to contact your break down service provider. Some car insurance companies include this service as part of the insurance policy, whilst others do not and you may have been required to purchase separate cover.

If you have a mobile phone it is best to use this as you can remain seated in the car, however if you do not have a mobile phone you will need to walk up the carriage way to the emergency telephone. This phone is free and is manned directly by the Highways Agency, who will take down all your details and attempt to pin-point where you are. They will then be able to organise the best solution to get you back on the roads again.

If you don't have break down cover the Highways Agency should be able to arrange for an emergency tow but this can be quite expensive, definitely more so than if you had purchased the cover with your car insurance policy. Once you have made contact with the recovery services sit tight and relax and you should soon be on your way again.

Rochelle Martinez, Freelance Web Content Article Writer for three years. Some of her articles are about car insurance.

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