5 Car Care Tips for Safe Holiday Travel
With the average age of cars on the road today at an all-time high and gas prices low, vehicle maintenance is increasingly important, particularly during the busy holiday season.
Before a long road trip, even small maintenance tasks can increase vehicle safety and minimize more costly repair problems down the road, suggests the Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. (NYSE: THG).
It offers five simple tips before hitting the road this holiday season to help improve travel safety:
- Whether your trip is 50 or 500 miles, take time to check, change or top-off your oil, coolant, brake and transmission fluids. This helps important car systems to perform well.
- If your windshield wipers are not working well or are more than six months old, it’s a good idea to replace them. Bad windshield wipers make driving in the rain on unfamiliar roads more dangerous.
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- Have your tires checked and consider having them rotated. Err on the side of caution by replacing any tires that look suspect, as tire blow-outs can be dangerous. Replacing a flat tire while on your trip can also deflate an enjoyable family getaway.
- Check your headlights and taillights to make sure all are working. New bulbs are easy to install, inexpensive, improve visibility and safety. Importantly, in most states you can also receive a traffic violation for a non-working vehicle exterior light.
- Perhaps the most simple and often forgotten pre-road trip tip is to clean your windows on the inside and out to increase visibility. During the holidays, many are traveling on unfamiliar roads and often in the dark, so having good visibility is important.
The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc., based in Worcester, Mass., is the holding company for several property and casualty insurance companies in the United States.
