The short answer
The Highway Code's winter rule says not to drive in ice or snow unless the journey is essential, and if it is, to carry an emergency kit: de-icer and an ice scraper, a torch, warm clothing and boots, a first aid kit, jump leads, a shovel, a warm drink and some food. The Met Office adds a reflective warning triangle, ideally two, a phone charger with a portable battery, a blanket and, oddly but sensibly, sunglasses for low winter sun. Put those in a bag in the boot this week and check the bag once a month.
If the car does stop, the Code's advice comes down to three things: get it off the road if you can, make yourself visible, and keep yourself away from moving traffic. On a motorway that means out of the car and behind the barrier, never back in it, and never a warning triangle on the carriageway.
The kit list in the Highway Code
Rule 228 of the Highway Code's adverse weather section is the official list. In winter, check the local forecast for ice and snow warnings and do not drive in those conditions unless you have to. If you must, allow more time and take an emergency kit in case you get stuck or the car breaks down. The Code names:
- de-icer and an ice scraper
- a torch
- warm clothing and boots
- a first aid kit
- jump leads
- a shovel
- a warm drink and emergency food
The Met Office's winter-preparation page adds a reflective warning triangle, ideally two, an in-car phone charger and a portable battery charger, a blanket and sunglasses. None of this needs to be bought new or branded; most households own most of it already. The point is that it lives in the car from now until spring, not in a cupboard at home.
Six checks before a long winter drive
The Met Office sets out six checks, as read on its page today. They take ten minutes on a driveway and catch most of what strands people in cold weather.
- Fuel. Enough for the whole journey plus delays. Stop-start traffic and heater use burn more than the same miles in summer.
- Oil. Check the dipstick with the engine cold and top up with the correct grade. Do not overfill; too much oil causes its own problems.
- Rubber. The legal tyre tread depth for cars is 1.6mm; the page suggests at least 3mm in icy or very wet conditions. Check pressures against the figure in the manual or on the door label. Look at the wiper blades for splits and replace them every 12 months.
- Coolant. Only when the engine is cool. The level should sit between the minimum and maximum marks; a sudden drop needs a garage.
- Electrics. Every light and indicator working, with someone outside the car to confirm the brake lights.
- Screen wash. Topped up with a product rated to at least -15 degrees Celsius, so it does not freeze in the jets on the first clear morning.
The MOT history of your own car is a useful seventh check. Advisories for tyres near the limit or a lamp not working are the items most likely to catch you out in the dark, and they will be listed on the free GOV.UK MOT history service.
If you break down on an ordinary road
Rules 275 and 276 of the Code's breakdowns section set the order. Get the vehicle off the road if you possibly can; a place designed for parking is safest, a lay-by less so because it sits next to moving traffic. Switch on the hazard lights if the car is causing an obstruction. Wear something light or fluorescent in daylight and reflective after dark or in fog, which is why a hi-vis vest belongs in the kit rather than the boot floor. Put a warning triangle on the road at least 45 metres (147 feet) behind the car, on the same side of the road. Do not stand between the car and oncoming traffic, and keep passengers and animals well away from the road.
If you break down on a motorway
Rule 277 is different in several respects, and the differences matter. If the car will still move, leave at the next exit or pull into a service area. If it will not, move to the left-hand lane and stop as far left as possible with the hazard lights on, plus sidelights if it is dark or visibility is poor. Get out by the side furthest from the traffic if it is safe to do so, and wait behind the safety barrier where there is one. The Code is blunt: do not return to your vehicle even if it is raining, cold or dark, which is why the blanket and the warm clothing are in the kit. Do not put a warning triangle on the carriageway, and do not try to repair the car. Use an emergency telephone where there is one for free advice and help, and if you are stopped near one, stop just beyond it.
If you cannot reach a place of relative safety, the Code says to stay in the vehicle with seat belts and hazard lights on and call 999, or press the SOS button if the car has one. If you have stopped in an emergency area, rule 278 says you must use the emergency telephone there and follow the operator's advice before trying to leave it.
What this does not mean
This article carries no figures from our MOT data: it is the Highway Code's advice and the Met Office's, as read on their pages today, and nothing here says how likely a breakdown is or what most often causes one. A full kit does not make a tired battery or a worn tyre any less likely to let you down; it changes what a breakdown costs you in cold and risk when it happens. The checks above are the ones an owner can do on a driveway, and they are no substitute for a garage looking at a battery or a brake that is already showing symptoms.
Frequently asked questions
The Highway Code does not make it a legal requirement, but rule 276 tells you to use one on an ordinary road, placed at least 45 metres behind the car on the same side, and the Met Office puts one in its basic kit. Rule 277 says never to use one on a motorway, where you should be behind the barrier rather than on the carriageway placing it.
On a motorway, no, unless you cannot get to a place of relative safety: the Code says to leave by the side away from traffic, wait behind the barrier and not return even if it is cold or dark. On an ordinary road the Code's priority is getting the car off the road and keeping yourself away from traffic; a warm, visible wait on the verge is usually the safer option than sitting in a car that other drivers may not see in time.
The legal minimum for cars is 1.6mm. The Met Office's winter page suggests at least 3mm in icy or very wet conditions and checking every fortnight, together with pressures set to the figure in the manual or on the door label. Tread near the limit will also appear as an advisory on the car's MOT history, which is a quick way to see whether the tyres were already close a few months ago.
No. The MOT checks the car, not what you carry in it. It does check the items that most often cause winter trouble: lights, tyres, wipers and washers, and the battery's security. Those lines on the MOT history are the best free guide to what your own car is likely to need before the cold weather arrives.
Sources and method
This article contains no MOT statistics. Its content is the Highway Code (rules 228 and 275 to 278) and the Met Office winter-preparation page, as read on GOV.UK and the Met Office website on 5 November 2026. The forecast line is from the Met Office UK forecast issued at 16:00 on 4 November 2026.
- GOV.UK: The Highway Code, driving in adverse weather conditions (rules 226 to 237)
- GOV.UK: The Highway Code, breakdowns and incidents (rules 274 to 287)
- Met Office: six things to do to prepare your vehicle for winter weather
- Met Office: UK weather warnings
- GOV.UK: Check the MOT history of a vehicle
About these figures. Figures are computed by SortedCars from the DVSA anonymised MOT results dataset (class 4, first tests only, test years 2021-2025), published under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Pass rate = passes divided by first tests, with pass-after-rectification counted as a fail. No figure is shown for any group with fewer than 500 tests. Test class 4 only, first tests only; retests are excluded. Pass rates describe fleets, not individual machines: they reflect how cars were driven, maintained and used as well as how they were built, and beyond recorded mileage none of that is in the data. A well-kept example of a model with a weak average can still pass; a neglected example of a strong one can still fail. Alias spellings of a make are counted under one make name and all trims of a model under one model name, using SortedCars' grouping tables.
This article is general information drawn from published test records. It is not professional, mechanical or legal advice, and an MOT pass or a clean MOT history does not guarantee that a car is roadworthy today. If you are unsure about a car, have it inspected by a qualified mechanic. You can check any vehicle's MOT history free on the official GOV.UK MOT history service.
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