This section covers
You can reduce the chances of breaking down with preventive maintenance and regular vehicle checks. However, no matter how careful you are, your vehicle can still break down – a puncture or engine problem is always possible.
Knowing how to deal with such a situation efficiently and safely is essential for every driver.
Many breakdowns are the result of
•neglect
•failing to make routine checks
•inadequate preventive maintenance
•abuse of the vehicle.
Don’t drive on ignoring unusual noises or symptoms or if you’re concerned that the problem might be serious.
Carry a tool kit in your vehicle. The following items are useful to keep for emergency use
•a warning triangle (or other permitted warning device; see overleaf)
•spare bulbs and fuses
•a torch
•vinyl tape
•wire
•jump leads
•a tow rope
•pliers
•a plastic container of water.
If you do break down, it’s useful to wear high-visibility clothing so that you can be seen by other road users. Consider carrying a fluorescent and reflective waistcoat (fluorescent so it can be seen in daylight and reflective so it can be seen at night).
National breakdown/motoring organisations By joining a national organisation or taking out breakdown insurance, you’ll save a great deal of time and money if you break down.
Most services include an option to take your vehicle and passengers either to your destination or to your home.
The annual fee is usually less than the cost of a single motorway breakdown call-out.
Permitted warning devices There are various warning devices that you can buy to place on the road to warn other drivers when you’ve broken down. Don’t use any of these warning devices
•on a motorway
•as an excuse to leave your car in a dangerous position.
Advance warning triangles Advance warning triangles fold flat and don’t take up much space in the car. You should carry one and use it to warn other road users if your car is obstructing the highway or is in a dangerous position as a result of a breakdown or a road traffic incident.
Where to position the triangle You should place the triangle on the road, well back from the car.
•On a straight, level road, put the triangle 45 metres (147 feet) from your vehicle.
•On a winding or hilly road, put the triangle where drivers will see it before they have to deal with any bend or hump in the road.
•On a very narrow road, put the triangle on the nearside verge or footpath.
Always use your hazard warning lights as well as a warning triangle, especially at night.
Other warning devices These include traffic cones, flat traffic delineators (which resemble a flattened cone) and traffic pyramids. At least four of any of these should be placed in a line behind your vehicle to guide traffic past. A flashing amber light may be used with any of these warning devices, but may not be used on its own.
Alternatively a flexible yellow sheet displaying a red triangle can be placed on the vehicle as long as it doesn’t obscure the number plate, lights or reflectors.
As a general rule, brake as gently as possible and pull over as far to the left as possible to keep your vehicle away from approaching traffic.
If the breakdown affects your control of the car
•try to keep in a straight line by holding the steering wheel firmly
•avoid braking severely
•steer gently on to the side of the road as you lose speed.
If possible, get your car off the road and
•use your hazard warning lights to warn others
•keep your sidelights on if it’s dark or visibility is poor
•wear high-visibility clothing to help other road users see you if you need to get out of your car
•don’t stand behind your vehicle where you might obscure the lights
•use a warning device, particularly if you’ve broken down near a bend or over the brow of a hill. Don’t use one if you’ve broken down on a motorway.
Keep children and animals under control, and away from the road.
Always take great care when you’re placing or retrieving a warning device.
Contact the police if your vehicle is causing an obstruction, and a breakdown service if you’re unable to rectify the fault yourself.
•ask for help from passing strangers
•accept help from strangers
•leave your vehicle for any longer than you really have to.
Drivers travelling alone You might feel vulnerable if you’re travelling alone and you break down – especially on an isolated stretch of road, a dual carriageway or a motorway.
You should spend as little time as possible away from your vehicle.
When you telephone for assistance, make it clear to the operator that you’re travelling alone. Priority will often be given in these cases.
If your vehicle can’t be repaired where it has broken down, it will need to be moved.
There are three options
•being recovered by a breakdown organisation to which you belong (the best option)
•calling out a local garage (probably the most costly)
•being towed by a friend (the most dangerous – in no circumstances should an inexperienced driver consider this).
If you’re being towed, remember that the braking won’t be as effective and the steering will feel heavier if the engine isn’t running.
For breakdowns and incidents in tunnels see page 303.
If you can’t reach the next exit or service area, steer your vehicle onto the hard shoulder as safely as possible, and as far to the left as you can, away from traffic.
When you stop it’s a good idea to have your wheels turned to the left so that if you’re hit from behind, your vehicle isn’t pushed on to the main carriageway.
Once you’ve stopped
•switch on your hazard lights to warn other drivers that you’ve broken down
•make sure your sidelights are on in poor visibility or at night
•don’t open the offside doors
•warn your passengers of the dangers of passing vehicles
•keep animals inside
•with your passengers, leave the vehicle by the nearside door away from the traffic. Lock all doors, except the front passenger door
•ask your passengers to wait near the vehicle, but on the embankment away from the hard shoulder
•telephone the emergency services (let them know if you’re a vulnerable motorist such as disabled, older, travelling alone or with young children). If possible use a roadside emergency telephone, which will pinpoint your position, rather than a mobile phone (see page 290).
Never
•attempt even simple repairs on the motorway
•place any kind of warning device on the carriageway or hard shoulder.
Disabled drivers If you have any kind of mobility difficulty you should stay in your vehicle and
•keep your seat belt fastened
•switch on your hazard warning lights
•display a ‘help’ pennant or use a mobile phone, if you have one in your vehicle, and be prepared to advise the emergency services of your location.
Emergency telephones These telephones are connected to Highways Agency control centres and are on most stretches of motorway at one-mile intervals.
Look for a telephone symbol and arrow on marker posts 100 metres (328 feet) apart along the hard shoulder.
The arrow directs you to the nearest phone on your side of the carriageway. Walk to the telephone, keeping on the inside of the hard shoulder.
Never cross the carriageway or an exit or entry slip road to reach a telephone or for any other purpose.
Using the emergency telephone The telephone connects you to a Highways Agency control centre, which will put you through to a breakdown service. Always face the traffic when you speak on the telephone.
You’ll be asked for
•the number on the telephone, which gives your precise location
•details of your vehicle and your membership details, if you belong to one of the motoring organisations
•details of the fault.
If you’re a vulnerable motorist such as a woman travelling alone, make this clear to the operator. You’ll also be told approximately how long you’ll have to wait.
Mobile phones If you’re unable to use an emergency telephone, use a mobile phone if you have one in your vehicle.
However, before you call, make sure that you can provide precise details of your location. Marker posts on the side of the hard shoulder identify your location and you should provide these details when you call.
Wait on the bank near your vehicle, so you can see the emergency services arriving.
Don’t wait in your vehicle unless another vehicle pulls up near you, and you feel at risk.
Many motorway deaths are caused by vehicles driving into people on the hard shoulder. When you’re on the hard shoulder you’re much more likely to be injured by motorway traffic than suffer a personal attack.
If anyone approaches
•get into the vehicle
•lock all the doors
•lower the window slightly
•speak through a small gap.
Then ask for identity and tell them that the police or control centre have been told and the emergency services are coming.
A Highways Agency traffic officer or a person claiming to be from the emergency services should have
•an identity card
•your details: your name and information about the breakdown.
Leave your vehicle again as soon as you feel the danger has passed.
If you can’t get your vehicle onto the hard shoulder, switch on your hazard warning lights and leave your vehicle only when you can safely get clear of the carriageway.
Use the hard shoulder to build up speed before joining the other traffic when it’s safe to do so. Don’t try to move out from behind another vehicle or force your way into the stream of traffic.
Remember to switch off your hazard warning lights before moving off.
Some dual carriageways are similar to motorways; they have
•a hard shoulder
•emergency telephones at regular intervals.
Most dual carriageways don’t have a wide hard shoulder. If you break down on one of these, get your car safely away from the road if you can – onto the grass verge or lay-by if there is one.
Don’t stop on unprotected lay-bys on dual carriageways if at all possible. Unprotected lay-bys are those where there’s no kerbed island between the main carriageway and the lay-by.
Many fatal incidents involving stopped vehicles on dual carriageways occur at these lay-bys. Try to find a protected lay-by if at all possible; you’ll be much safer there.
If you have to stop on a grass verge, take care as long grass could ignite from the heat of a catalytic converter.
You should also
•use your hazard warning lights and warning triangle or other warning device to warn others
•move your passengers to a safe position off the carriageway, well away from the vehicle
•go to the nearest telephone and arrange assistance
•keep animals safely in the car.
If your car suddenly becomes unstable or you begin to notice steering problems, you might have a puncture or a blow-out (burst tyre).
Try not to panic.
•Take your foot off the accelerator.
•Don’t brake suddenly.
•Try to keep a straight course by holding the steering wheel firmly.
•Stop gradually at the side of the road.
•Get the vehicle away from the traffic (onto the hard shoulder if you’re on a motorway).
If you have to move the vehicle, do so very slowly to avoid further damage to the tyre or wheel rim.
Get the vehicle to a place of safety before attempting to change the wheel.
If you can’t get off the road altogether, use your warning triangle, or any other permitted warning device, to warn other drivers, particularly if you’re near a bend. Never use one on a motorway.
If necessary, wait for assistance.
On a motorway, never attempt to change a tyre yourself. Always use the emergency telephones to call for assistance.
If you do have to change a wheel and can do so safely, remember to
•secure the vehicle when changing any wheel by applying the parking brake and using chocks if available
•work on a level surface
•retighten the wheel nuts or studs after changing a wheel.
