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Extra mile
Your online magazine from Kwik Fit insurance
Are you ready for winter?
During the cold snap at the start of 2010 we saw a huge jump of 57% in enquiries from broken down customers affected by the tough weather conditions all around the British Isles. It’s that time of year again with winter just around the corner and with another cold one predicted it’s time to start thinking about what you’d do in the event of a breakdown.
Who would you call? Would you rely on someone stop to help? Could you change a tyre? We surveyed almost 13,000 customers to find out the answers to these questions and the results were startling.
One of the most interesting stats to come out of our research related to stopping to help someone who had broken down. It appears that chivalry is still alive for British females with over two thirds of those surveyed stating that they would stop to help a damsel in distress. Unfortunately men are far more likely to be left stranded with less than half (45%) of those surveyed unwilling to help a male driver in the same position.
Worries about personal safety proved to be the number one deterrent for the 63% of respondents who admitted they wouldn’t risk stopping to help marooned men. Perhaps understandably though, another 1 in 4 people said the main reason they wouldn’t stop is because they wouldn’t have the first clue about how to solve any breakdown issues.
Despite lack of knowledge and lack of rescue prospects – for men at least – and with winter just around the corner, more than one in five people also confessed to having no breakdown cover whatsoever, meaning they could find themselves in a vulnerable position should they suffer any vehicle problems in the coming months. A quarter of respondents even admitted they would not know how to change a tyre.
Brendan Devine, group managing director of Kwik Fit Financial Services, said: “We’d advise all car owners to ensure they have adequate breakdown cover organised, especially as winter approaches and the nights get darker and temperature lower. It is best to plan for the unexpected as much as you can. Although there are willing helpers still ready to help vulnerable drivers in times of need, prevention of incidents should be the number one concern.”
We’ve got a breakdown product to suit every budget and a network of over 5000 trained mechanics who respond to emergency breakdown calls from customers. To get covered ahead of this winter click here
