You’ll be pleased to know, coming into Winter, that there are statistically fewer accidents in Winter than in the summer months. It’s also great to know that the UK has some of the safest roads in Europe, with 27.1 deaths per million. Only Sweden, the home of MIMsafe, has fewer deaths at 21.6 per million. (Department for Transport statistics: International comparisons of road deaths1: number and rates: by selected countries: 2009-2019)
Unfortunately, although there are fewer accidents in Winter, this is because there are fewer people traveling on the roads in the colder months. In fact, in Winter we are 20% more likely to have a road traffic accident than in the Summer months. (Insure The Box, 2017).
There are a number of reasons for this:
- Road conditions: due to wetter weather and lower temperatures, roads may be icy, wet, or covered in mud from agricultural machinery, making driving conditions dangerous.
- Weather conditions: fog, heavy rain or blizzards can seriously disrupt visibility.
- Lower sun angle: the lower angle of the sun can also impact driving visibility, particularly when roads are wet and shiny.
- Illness: we are statistically more likely to suffer from colds, flu covid, and other illnesses over the winter. Illness can make us more tired than usual and less able to concentrate, and cold and flu remedies can make us drowsy.
- Windscreen misted up or frozen: you need to go somewhere in a hurry, but the car is taking forever to demist or defrost. Don’t be tempted to drive until it is completely clear.
- It’s dark for longer each day: driving in the dark has added challenges such as reduced visibility, pedestrians or cyclists not wearing reflective clothing or moving from well-lit urban streets to areas that are poorly lit.
With all of these additional hazards throughout the winter months, it’s more important than ever to make sure that your family and pets are safe. If you’ve been thinking about purchasing one of our crash tested dog crates, now is the time to find out more, before we get into the depths of winter. All of our crates are crash tested and our priority is to keep both dogs and humans safe. Our crates work in conjunction with your vehicle’s crumple zone to keep you and your human passengers safe as well as your furry family members.
Find out more about how we crash test our crates by visiting our Safety Design page, and visit our Model Selector page to find out which crates will fit in your vehicle.
For more advice and ideas about how to stay safe this winter, the RAC website features a range of winter motoring tips.
Stay safe!
