The Cost of Ice for Motorists

Heavy Frost and icy windscreens means many of us have to spend time in the mornings heating up our cars before being able to drive to work. This has led to an opportunistic crime known as ‘Frosting' whereby car thieves rob cars which have been temporarily left unattended while the owner nips back into their house after turning on the engine to heat up the car.

Last year 66,000 motorists reported falling prey to this crime, which is often unanticipated in quiet residential areas. Naturally insurance companies are not showing much sympathy for victims of this crime. If a motorist has opted to leave their vehicle unlocked with the engine running while they return inside, the insurance company will often consider there to have been a failure in duty of care to look after the vehicle appropriately. Any statement made on these grounds will most likely be rejected and the driver will be left to fork out the cash to buy a new car.

Car robbers have been witnessed stalking the streets on chily mornings looking for someone to leave their car unattended with the engine running. So make sure that you do not fall prey to this crime by using alternative methods of de-icing your windscreen. Some people prefer pouring boiling hot water onto the windscreen but you should be cautious in using this technique as it could cause the windscreen to crack due to the extreme change in temperature. This could lead to another pricey insurance claim if you entire windscreen needs to be replaced, and often warming up the car via the engine is a more effective way of doing the job. Just remember to avoid leaving the car unattended when the engine is running and use an ice scraper to further clear your field of vision.

Do make sure that you can see fully before driving your car. Statistics say that you are more likely to cause any accident on the roads, if you only have a small spot to peer through on the windscreen. And if you do decided to drive in this situation and cause an accident you may find again that your insurer accuses you of breach of duty of care and being guilty of unsafe driving. If this is found to be true your insurer may not pay any for any claim relating to you or your vehicle.

So if you look out of your bedroom window in the morning and it is clear that Jack Frost has visited once again, please ensure that you keep your car safe as well as yourself and others.

Bruno is the writer of Winter Mechanical Aspects. You can find more articles on this subject at Winter Transmission Problems and Winter Car Preparation.

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