Parents Warned to Prep Cars ahead of School Return

Motorists are being advised to check the condition of their car this weekend, ahead of the end of the school Christmas holidays, with AA Rescue warning that next Monday could be a particularly busy day for breakdowns.
In advance of the return of the school run, parents are being advised to start their car for a few minutes over the weekend, particularly if it has been idle for a significant period of time over the Christmas period, to ensure their battery is still functioning. Motorists are also being advised to carry out some basic car checks, including that all lights are working, to ensure they are ready for the week ahead.
“Many parents, especially if their children are younger, will have opted or needed to take additional time off from work over the Christmas holidays, meaning that some may not have used their car at all in the past fortnight. Leaving a car idle, particularly in the cold weather we’ve seen recently, can result in older or weaker batteries no longer functioning and the car not starting as a result,” Conor Faughnan, AA Director of Consumer Affairs stated.
“If you haven’t driven much in the last few days taking the pro-active step of starting your car for just a few minutes over the weekend can help you avoid a panicked start to your Monday morning. Even if the car won’t start, at least you find out on a quieter Saturday as opposed to a day where traffic will be busier and you need to be on time for work.”
With a heavy frost expected on Sunday night, AA Rescue is warning that a spike in breakdowns is likely on Monday morning. Meanwhile, motorists are also being advised that traffic across the country will return to normal levels from Monday, after a quieter first week of 2018 on the roads.
“For cars, and batteries in particular, cold weather is a nightmare and always brings with it an increase in breakdowns but if you stay ahead of the game and check that your car is in working order over the weekend you can minimise the risk of finding yourself stuck at home on Monday morning,” Faughnan added. “For those who have already returned to work, it’s also advisable to start leaving a little earlier from next Monday as the end of the school holidays will mean increased traffic. The traffic situation won’t fully return to normal until colleges across the country return, but the quicker journeys and quieter roads that motorists experienced in the first week of 2018 will certainly come to an end.”
Motorists can keep up with the latest traffic updates from AA Roadwatch by visiting https://www.theaa.ie/roadwatch/newsroom/