Driver training specialist IAM Drive & Survive is offering weekly motoring tips to drivers from its head of training, Simon Elstow. This week, as forecasters predict a hard winter, he is advising motorists on preparing their cars for the cold season.

Elstow said: “Now is the time to give your car a health-check before winter conditions take their toll. Bad weather can strike quickly, and more severely than you expect, so it’s really important to be ready.”

Elstow suggests some easy tips to prepare your car for winter:

1. In a UK winter you are more likely to encounter wind and rain, so make sure your windscreen wipers are in good condition and that you clean the inside of the windscreen regularly
2. Do a proper check of your vehicle - particularly the tyres - top up your washer fluid and make sure last year’s ice scraper and de-icer are up to the job
3. The legal minimum for tyre tread in the UK is 1.6mm, but for optimum safety start looking for replacements if the depth is below 3mm
4. Check all your lights
5. Pack an emergency kit, including a warm coat, high visibility jacket, some food and water, a good pair of boots, de-icer and scraper, a torch, a spade and a mobile phone with a well-charged battery. Remember to store your emergency breakdown number.

Elstow said: “Many roads are still pot-holed after last winter so having a well-maintained car, and paying particular attention to your tyres, is going to be extremely important.”