July 31st is the day your vehicle is most likely to breakdown on, according to new FOI data

New research from scrap price comparison service Scrap Car Comparison  reveals the months and days of the year when your vehicle is most likely to break down, with data gained from a Freedom of Information request to Highways England revealing that there is in fact an official ‘Breakdown Day’ for the whole of the UK.

July 31st is revealed as the UK’s official ‘breakdown day’

Data from Highways England revealed that it was July 31st which was the day with the most breakdowns in 2020, with 1,080 motorway breakdowns in just one day. Interestingly, according to data obtained by the same FOI request, it was July 25th which had the most motorway breakdowns (1,145) in the year 2019 – suggesting that UK drivers should take extra precautions when driving in the last week of July, to avoid getting stuck on the roadside.

Following July 31st as the nation’s ‘breakdown day’ was 7th August, with 915 motorway breakdowns. August was also revealed as the month in 2020 with the most motorway incidents – 19,448, to be exact – the equivalent of over 11% of the year’s motorway breakdowns (172,805).

Top 10 days with the most motorway incidents in 2020

1. July 31st 2020 – 1,080 breakdowns
2. August 7th 2020 – 915 breakdowns
3. August 10th 2020 – 800 breakdowns
4. August 21st 2020 – 775 breakdowns
5. August 28th 2020 – 768 breakdowns
6. February 17th 2020 – 761 breakdowns
7. August 12th 2020 – 753 breakdowns
8. August 14th 2020 – 753 breakdowns
9. February 19th 2020 – 750 breakdowns
10. February 28th 2020 – 749 breakdowns

Top 5 months with the most motorway incidents in 2020

1. August 2020 – 19,448 breakdowns
2. February 2020 – 18,529 breakdowns
3. January 2020 – 17,498 breakdowns
4. September 2020 – 16,504 breakdowns
5. July 2020 – 16,383 breakdowns

Dan Gick, Managing Director of Scrap Car Comparison commented:

“It’s been really interesting to sift through this unique data to see the times of year when it’s most common to break down on the roads. July and August proved common times for people to break down on the motorway, hinting that cars overheating on long summer holiday drives is something we all need to be wary of before packing the car and setting off.

If you find yourself breaking down on the motorway, there are a few things you can do, including:

1. Try to get off the motorway if you can – if not, pull into the hard shoulder, turning as far to the left of the road as possible.
2. Turn on your hazard warning lights , if it is dark or visibility is bad, keep your sidelights on as well.
3. Get out of your car and wait in a safe place (eg. behind a barrier or up a bank). Stay upstream of any traffic and leave all animals in the car.
4. Make yourself visible. Wait somewhere where you’ll be easy to spot and put on some high-vis clothing if you have it.

It’s advisable to keep an emergency kit in the car at all times – the 11 things we recommend you should pack in your emergency car kit include:

1. Jump leads
2. Blanket
3. Warning triangle
4. Hi-vis and warm jacket
5. Snacks and water
6. Boots or wellies
7. Snow equipment
8. Phone charger/battery pack
9. A powerful torch
10. First aid kit
11. Tow rope

However, if your car is becoming a breakdown risk whenever it takes to the road, it could be time to consider scrapping it.”

You can view the full findings of the study at: https://www.scrapcarcomparison.co.uk/blog/which-days-most-breakdowns-happen