Preparing for Winter

The tyres, the engine, the brakes, the battery and even the windscreen wipers can be affected in cold weather. It doesn’t matter if it’s raining, sleeting, snowing or it’s just plain cold, our vehicles need extra care during the winter months to ensure they continue to run smoothly.

Some of the steps we take to maintain a safe and efficient fleet are:

• Car battery – the battery is more often than not the main culprit for any breakdown during the winter. We make sure to get ours checks and when we leave the vehicle, all lights and windscreen wipers are turned off.
  
  

• Coolant and anti-freeze – we always ensure that our coolant is between the minimum and maximum lines. We then check that there is sufficient anti-freeze in the coolant.
  

• Tyres – during the winter, nothing takes more of a battering that the tyres. It doesn’t matter what the conditions are, the tyres are always wearing. We always check there is adequate tread on all of our tyres and there are no splits or bulges and make sure the air pressure is correct.
  

• Screenwash –  our drivers check that the screenwash is topped up at all times, especially during winter, and particularly when the gritters are out, so they can see clearly through the windscreen. It’s important to check that the correct concentration of screenwash for cold weather conditions and have a look at the information on the bottle to see what temperature the screenwash is protected to.
  

• Oil level – we check the oil regularly and oil consumption has been known to increase in cold weather. If oil levels are too low, it can cause significant damage to the engine
  

• Brakes – during winter, heavy rainfall, icy roads and thick snow can cause havoc. Checking our brakes daily is at the top of our priority list.
  

• Lights - our drivers check that the headlights, brake lights and fog lights are all working properly before travelling.
  

Not only do we follow a maintenance checklist, we also ensure our drivers are fully equipped before they start a journey.
Our vehicle kits include:

• Ice scraper and de-icer

• Extra screenwash

• Torch

• Gloves and hats

• Winter boots

• First aid kit

• Jump start cables

• Shovel

• Satnav or map