Holiday drivers urged to their check cars

An estimated 17.6 million Brits are going on summer holiday by car this year, according to new research, but one in seven drivers won’t make any checks before setting off.

The analysis from Kwik Fit, the UK’s leading automotive servicing and repair company, also reveals that drivers will cover an average of 400 miles – that’s from the New Forest to Berwick-upon-Tweed.

Additionally, some 3.6 million holidaymakers will be covering more than 500 miles. These high milers will drive an average of 984 miles, the equivalent of a return trip from Oxford to Aberdeen.

However, more than a quarter (28%) of drivers won’t check their tyre pressures and over a half (57%) will not assess the tyre tread.

With forecasters predicting heatwaves through the summer, the two thirds (66%) of drivers who don’t check their coolant could be storing up trouble.

In addition, only one in six (17%) drivers check their air conditioning, a feature which could provide welcome relief in blistering conditions in the summer holidays.

Kwik Fit is not only highlighting the importance of checks, but also urging motorists to carry them out in plenty of time before holiday journeys.

Monday, July 17 is forecast be the fifth busiest single day for garages in the last four years, as drivers planning for the school holiday getaway realise at the last minute that their cars need work.

Since 2019, Kwik Fit has seen demand on the last Monday of the English school term rise by 49% compared to the typical daily figure across the rest of the year. With average daily servicing and repair enquiries now up by 21% on pre-pandemic figures, drivers who wait until the last week to get work done are likely to find garages very busy.

Kwik Fit is reminding drivers covering significant mileage of the importance of carrying out checks for their return journeys as well as their outbound trip. Nearly two in five drivers (39%) say they don’t make any checks before their return journey. Even among the high mileage group, 29% say they don’t carry out any checks before setting off back home.