Staying safe when you have broken down on the motorway is your number one priority when awaiting car breakdown recovery and while there are lots of horror stories surrounding this issue the reality is that with a few simple steps you will find the whole experience quite straightforward.

You should, of course, do all you can to avoid breaking down on the hard shoulder, but if you do find your car breaking down then move over to the hard shoulder lane asap and use it to slow down in – not the motorway itself!

Being careful to avoid any debris (the hard shoulder can be littered!) steer your front wheels towards the grass verge and ensure you turn your hazard lights on as soon as you can to want others that you are a breakdown and use your sidelights also if it is dark or foggy.

Forget about your warning triangle too as it can be dangerous placing it (unless you are in Europe, in which case it is illegal not to). Instead, get everyone out of the car using the doors facing the verge and not the traffic and get them to sit away from the car.

And make sure you bring your mobile with you or hunt for a car breakdown emergency phone and call for pick up immediately. If you feel you cannot wait outside your car then put your seatbelt on and sit properly to ensure that the safety systems work if you are hit by another car.

Once you have had your car fixed and you can move on again accelerate to speed using the hard shoulder lane and keep you hazard lights on until you have rejoined the motorway again. If it cannot be fixed at the side of the road you will be towed to a nearby garage and from there you should be safe.

>> To get more car breakdown advice read more of our guides via this link