You are driving on the road and suddenly you hear a loud sound, one of your tyres begin to wobble. You successfully get the car to stop safely. However, after checking your car, the tyre is a write-off  and you discover your spare tyre is not in good condition. How did this happen? How conducive is your next course of action?

You are just about to drive into your street late at night and suddenly smoke starts choking you in the car. You rush out and open the hood, sure enough a fire has started. Quickly you fish out your fire extinguisher but it’s not spraying effectively. You check the expiry date, it expired 8 months ago. What would happen to that car if timely help doesn’t arrive?

We have probably experienced this, seen or heard about someone it happened to. How do we allow things deteriorate to this level where things that are supposed to save us end up hurting us due oversight? How often do we check our vehicles to ensure that all the necessary spare materials are present? How often do we check that the content of our vehicle emergency kit are present and in good condition? Do you even have a vehicle emergency kit?

Emergencies are emergencies because they do not let you know before they occur. This is the reason it is important to be prepared at all times. It is therefore important for every vehicle to have the following at every point in time:

Flashlight

Towline

Booster cable

Spare tyre

Serviceable fire extinguisher

Jack

Caution sign

Handheld tools (screwdriver, spanner)

Engine oil

Coolant

These things are not used on a daily basis but the day you have an emergency, you’d be glad you have them. You may not be able to use some of them yourself but when help arrives, you would be asked for them. The availability is the next step to solving your car problem quickly.

Unfortunately, some of us would rather say “God forbid” or “it’s not my portion” but whose portion is it? If you do not check that your car is in good condition, whose fault is it if something goes wrong? If you do not check periodically that items with expiration date are still serviceable, whose fault will it be when it is time to use that item and it is not functioning optimally? We need to begin to be more proactive about our personal safety wherever we find ourselves for long periods as emergencies can happen anywhere.

Are you still considering cost? The cost of your life or damage to the vehicle is way higher than what you would spend on purchasing the right safety tools for your vehicle.

Take action today!