Driving in the winter brings with it additional challenges. Darker nights, heavy rain, and sometimes snow and ice. Just because there are new challenges, it doesn't mean you should stop, or delay, learning to drive, in fact the opposite is true. 

Should I continue (or start) learning to drive in the Winter?

In short; yes. We get it, when the evenings get dark we’d all rather be snuggled up on the sofa watching Christmas movies and digging into a takeaway, but after you pass your test you’ll still need to drive in the winter months. So whilst there are new challenges when driving in the winter months, it's vital that you learn how to get around them and get used to driving in adverse driving conditions. 

What are the additional challenges?

Black ice, snow, rain, wind – you name it, winter has it, and these conditions can make driving more dangerous than usual. You need more space between cars, visibility on the roads is very limited and the traction of the car might struggle too, meaning you could skid. But don’t let this put you off, learning to drive in the winter can teach you invaluable skills for life!

Whether you get behind the wheel as a learner in the winter or do it when you’ve passed your test the year later – you’re still going to have to tackle this weather (unless you hibernate for the winter, which doesn’t sound too bad!). 

Driving lessons in winter 

If you’re learning to drive in the winter, your instructor will likely start you on very quiet roads where you can get to grips with how the car feels on snow and ice. If you don’t have this knowledge as a learner, then you’ll have to face this for the first time on more difficult roads which will add more pressure on to you as a new driver.

You probably want to learn, pass and have your own freedom as soon as possible, right? Well learning to drive in the winter can actually take a little longer. Of course, learning to drive in the winter will help in the future, but if the road conditions are too dangerous, some instructors may reschedule your lesson for when the weather isn’t as bad.

Should you continue with private practice?

In short, yes. We love writing guides and articles to try and help you on the roads, whether you’re a new driver or you’re still learning – but nothing really beats actually getting out there and giving it a go yourself. Would you know what to do if you were to skid on the ice? Well if you’ve read our guides then maybe. But would you remember this information if you had to put it in practice? Maybe not. Getting out and giving it a go is the best way to improve your winter driving skills.

Private practice is the perfect opportunity to get experience in a variety of real life driving conditions and scenarios - and that includes winter driving. 

So get covered with provisional insurance and get on the road this winter.