Drive Safe for Mother's Day
Dated: 13 Mar, 2026
It is Mother's Day this Sunday and we would like to wish all the amazing Mums have a great day celebrating.
Before you make a long journey to see your mother on Sunday, make sure both you and your vehicle are fit for travel before setting off. We suggest using FLOWERS to remember everything. Hopefully you will also remember flowers for your mum.
Fuel: Ensure you have enough fuel or charge for your journey or check when you can fill up/recharge on your route.
If you drive an electric vehicle, use an app such as Zapmap to find the most suitable and convenient public charging points on your journey.
Lights: Check all the lights on your vehicle are working – get someone else to walk around to check them if you can. Don’t forget the number plate light as there can be a £100 fine if your reg is not visible. Make sure they are also clean, and the lenses are free of cracks.
Oil: Check that the oil level is between the minimum and maximum marks on the dipstick. Only check oil levels when the engine is cold and always remember to wipe the dipstick before taking any readings.
Water: Although just water can be used to top up the screen wash container it is advisable to use ready-mixed or concentrated screen wash on your windscreen. The advantages of this are screen wash contains detergents to cut through dirt and bug smears and solvents to stop the fluid from freezing in winter. Fill the screen wash to the fill level.
Also check that the coolant is above the minimum level and below the maximum level. (If the tank is too full there is no room for the coolant to expand so don’t overfill). As with the oil, make sure your engine is cold before checking the coolant levels in your radiator.
Electrics: Have a quick visual check that your battery is free from any damage and is securely in place. Also remember that failing batteries often cause breakdowns so get older batteries checked by a garage. They can also check the drain on your battery to see if it is getting to the end of its use.
For electric vehicles (EVs) do a visual check to see that all the cables are in good condition. Remember this is a visual check only, DO NOT touch the orange cables, they carry high voltage and can be fatal to touch. If there is any damage to these, they MUST be checked and repaired by an EV specialist.
Check you have your charging cables with you. Although many EV charging stations have rapid charge cables, it’s always handy to have your own cables for long journeys. Remember rapid chargers only charge effectively to 80%, beyond this percentage the speed of rpaid charges slow down considerably.
Rubber: Check the tyres are properly inflated. Your vehicle handbook will tell you the recommended tyre pressure for your vehicle (and don’t forget the spare, you never know when you might need it!). Having your tyres at the correct pressure saves on fuel, and most importantly make them safer.
Your tyre treads should be at 1.6mm at an absolute minimum. The tread has to be the minimum depth across ¾ of the tyre. Driving with tread below the legal limit is not only dangerous, as you have less grip and longer stopping distances, but could also cost you 3 penalty points and a £2,500 fine PER TYRE. That’s 12 points and £10,000 if all four tyres have treads below the legal limit. Use a tyre tread depth gauge to check your treads, or you can also use the outer rim of a 20p piece (this is roughly 2mm so you can use this as a guide).
Visually inspect the windscreen wipers by lifting them away from the windscreen. The rubber on these can split, change shape or stiffen as they age, or they may collect dirt which will smear over the windscreen making it difficult to see.
Self: Make sure you are well enough to make the journey. A well-rested driver is a safer driver. Take regular breaks as concentrating on a drive, especially if the roads are unfamiliar can be exhausting. Having a break from driving every couple of hours is also good for the posture as you can relieve the muscles that have been in the same position for some time. Making a long journey, often with youngsters in the back, can also be stressful so give everyone the chance to ‘stretch their legs’ so you can all take a break from travelling.
