The worst feeling is driving up to your destination and realizing you forgot something important at home. Or rushing out the door and during your drive being alerted by your stomach that you are, indeed, quite hungry. Or forgetting to bring money along and seeing your gas light turn on miles into your journey.
Other times, not having something on hand can be more dire. Because of the frequency with which people drive in cars, it’s easy to forget how dangerous they can be. While it’s always good to have a positive outlook, it’s also important to prepare for the worst. Getting stuck in the middle of nowhere or getting in an accident while driving in wintry weather is never good, but being prepared for if it happens will make it a little more tolerable (and may be vital).
While some circumstances can’t easily be prepared for (like forgetting your laptop), there are some thing that you can keep in your car just in case, for those moments you really need them. Here is a list of 10 things you should always keep in your car to be prepared for anything.
- First and foremost it’s always good to keep some type of non-perishable snack in your car, like granola bars or a snack mix. It will for sure save you on those mornings you’re rushing out the door and, in the worst case, if you get stuck in your car for an extended period of time, you will have something to eat.
- An ice scraper is a must especially during the winter months. Visibility is a huge component of safe driving and making sure you can see out of all your car windows is very important.
- Always make sure you have your spare tire and jack on hand as well. While there are many services now to help you if your tire needs to be changed, it’s always good to be prepared in case assistance isn’t available.
- Money. Just keeping $20 in your glove compartment for emergencies is so important. You don’t want to run out of gas in the middle of the road because you forgot money and were running low.
- Of course, a phone charger is always good to have on hand. No one wants to run low on battery power and worry if your going to miss an important call or worse, if you get into a dangerous situation, you need to be able to make calls for help.
- In the case you have to sleep in your car, or you break down in the winter and can’t turn on the heat, it’s always good to have blankets and gloves to keep you warm.
- A flashlight is another essential for if you happen to break down somewhere at night. Being able to see to fix the problem or signal for help can save you hours.
- Having a notepad and pen available is always nice for random note taking, writing down important information from a call or random doodling while parked in the carpool line.
- Everyone should have a First Aid Kit in their car. It’s so important to be able to administer basic first aid to yourself or your passengers in the case that the worst happens.
- Last, but certainly not least, you should always have a supply of water in your car for days that you need a little more hydration before heading into work or, again looking at the worst-case scenario, if you end up being stuck in your car for a long period of time.
