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Tips for driving safely in the rain

Avoid hard braking

Slow down to avoid hydroplaning

Turn on the car's ventilation system to reduce fogging

Avoid sliding and spinning out of a turn

Turning off cruise control

Turn on headlights to improve visibility

Driving in the rain at night

FAQ

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Whether it is soft rain or a downpour, driving in the rain can be challenging and risky. On very wet roads, your vehicle may lose traction and be difficult to control, so it is important to be prepared and find out the main obstacles you may encounter. Here are some tips for driving on wet roads as safely as possible.

Avoid hard braking

On wet roads, a car’s brakes don’t work with the same speed that you might be used to on dry roads. To drive on wet roads safely, it is essential to avoid hard braking to reduce the risk of the car starting to spin. You should check the traffic and carefully monitor the vehicle in front, increasing the safe distance.

It is important to limit your use of the brake pedal and only brake when necessary. You should also slow down by taking your foot off the accelerator, when possible, instead of pressing the brake pedal.

Slow down to avoid hydroplaning

One of the most important rules for driving safely in the rain is to slow down, reducing the speed of the car. This gives you greater control of the situation, with more time and space to act in the event of an emergency.

Reducing your speed also helps you to avoid aquaplaning, a phenomenon that reduces tyres’ grip and causes the partial or total loss of control of the vehicle. If this happens, gently lift your foot off the accelerator and keep the steering wheel straight; do not brake or steer suddenly until you regain control.

Turn on the car's ventilation system to reduce fogging

Rain increases the humidity and condensation inside the vehicle, with a risk of reduced visibility due to misted windows. In these circumstances, you should turn on the car’s ventilation system and defroster function to reduce misting on the vehicle’s windscreen, rear window and side windows.

Good visibility is essential when driving in rain, especially when the rain is very heavy. Just one misted window means that you do not have control of the surrounding space and there is a risk that you might not see a vehicle overtaking or a bicycle at the side of the car when parking.

Avoid sliding and spinning out of a turn

It is essential to pay close attention to bends when driving on wet roads, to avoid skidding in the middle of the bend, losing control of the vehicle and spinning off the road. You should reduce your speed ahead of the bend, then while cornering, you should press the accelerator lightly to increase the grip and avoid using the brakes.

Before setting off, it is essential to check the tread depth of your tyres. Excessive tread wear can cause a very dangerous loss of traction on bends. If you lose control on a bend, keep the steering wheel straight and reduce your speed, only braking when you regain traction.

Turning off cruise control

Cruise control is a very useful and convenient device, whereby the car can control the speed itself, maintaining an optimal safe distance from the vehicle in front. However, in the rain, it is best to turn off cruise control as you need to have full control of the car’s speed.

This is especially true for vehicles with adaptive cruise control, which is a more advanced system with greater control of the car. Turning off cruise control in an emergency situation is very risky because you need to brake to deactivate the device, risking aquaplaning. It is better to avoid the risk and turn off cruise control straight away.

Turn on headlights to improve visibility

When it’s raining, you should turn on your car’s headlights to increase visibility and have better control of the road. A car’s headlights also help other drivers to see the vehicle, reducing the risk of collisions, especially in heavy rain that seriously reduces visibility.

In these situations, you should turn on the car’s dipped headlights, which is compulsory in many countries for road safety. Stop lamps are also extremely important. If a warning light alerts you to the malfunctioning of a light, you should stop as soon as possible and head to a petrol station or garage to replace the damaged lamp.

Driving in the rain at night

Driving in the rain at night is more dangerous. At night, visibility is reduced and roads are not always lit, plus you may be tired after a day at work and your reflexes may not be as sharp. In these cases, you should follow all the advice above but even more carefully than when driving in normal traffic conditions during the day.

In the rain at night, you should reduce the speed of the car and the safe distance even more and keep the windows totally clear. Before setting off, check that the vehicle’s equipment is working – lights, ventilation system and windows – and check the tyres’ wear and pressure.

FAQ

What is the safest speed for driving when it rains?

Tyres lose grip on wet roads so you should reduce your speed by about a third. For example, if the speed limit is 60mph, you should decrease your speed and drive at 40mph.

Why should you drive slower in wet conditions?

Visibility decreases in wet conditions, tyres have less grip, brakes are less efficient and water accumulations on the tarmac can cause aquaplaning, so you need to reduce your speed.

How do you drive on a wet motorway?

Driving on a wet motorway is very dangerous because of the high speeds, so it is important to reduce your speed, increase the safe distance, not make abrupt manoeuvres and not brake suddenly.

What to do if you hydroplane

If you hydroplane, you should stay calm, avoid braking and slowly lift your foot off the accelerator, dropping down through the gears to reduce your speed and turning the steering wheel to correct the swerve if needed.