British families will rack up an astonishing 15.7 billion miles in their own cars during holidays this year, new research from Kwik Fit has found.
A study of motorists’ plans found that nearly half of driver (46 per cent) have taken or plan to take their car on holiday this year, covering an average of 1082 miles. To put that into perspective, that’s further than driving from Bournemouth to Bratislava, Sunderland to Salzburg or Manchester to Monaco.
The average number of holidays by car being taken by UK motorists this year is 2.5. Most of the trips will be in the UK, with 13.2 million cars being used for domestic holidays; however, 2.2 million cars will be heading to France, 550,000 to Germany, 520,000 to Spain and 390,000 to Italy.
For those holidaying in Blighty, 28 per cent will be visiting the South West, 21 per cent the South Coast, 20 per cent will visit Wales, 19 per cent Scotland, 16 per cent the Lake District, 14 per cent the Yorkshire Dales and 13 per cent the Midlands.
Drivers in the Midlands also have the furthest to travel, with an expected average of 1,322 miles. Welsh drivers, conversely, have the shortest distance to cover, with an expected 722 miles.
But despite covering long distances, many motorists admit that they fail to carry out basic checks on their car. 25 per cent don’t check their tyre pressures, 51 per cent will fail to check the tread on their tyres and 67 per cent will fail to check their spare. Only 44 per cent check their coolant levels and only 37 per cent will check their brake fluid. Worryingly, 9 per cent of motorists will check nothing at all before embarking on a long journey.
Roger Griggs from Kwik Fit said: “Driving hundreds of miles in a short space of time will take its toll on any vehicle, particularly if you’re a family carrying heavy loads. To cover such distances safely and with peace of mind, it’s vital that holidaymakers carry out basic checks before they set off.”
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