Are you a ‘Breakdown Billy’ or a ‘By the Booker’?

When it comes to servicing our cars, new research from Kwik-Fit has revealed that the majority of motorists ignore the rule book and instead take matters into their own hands – often leaving it until their car complains.

Kwik-Fit’s study shows of those motorists who have their car serviced, 12% do so only when it starts making unusual noises and 11% only when the performance deteriorates.  A staggering 830,000 drivers (3%) said they never service their car.

Only one in five motorists (22%) take notice of the recommended service intervals through their dashboard indicator or their car manual.

A third of motorists prefer to adopt the annual approach and either pick a date in the calendar each year (13%) or chose to have their service and MoT completed together (20%), a combination offered by Kwik-Fit that saves time and money.

For motorists looking to save time and money, Kwik-Fit offers an interim service from just £79 and a full service from just £145.  And for those motorists who aren’t Calendar Car Carers or don’t plan too far ahead, Kwik-Fit can usually offer appointments within 48 hours – drivers can go online to select and book their appointment time at kwik-fit.com.

Ian Fraser, chief executive of Kwik-Fit, said: “When it comes to servicing, it is worrying to see how many motorists are ignoring the recommended intervals or even not bothering with a service at all.

“We all know that prevention is better than cure, that’s why the recommended service intervals are set. The more regularly a car is serviced, the more likely a problem is to be picked up before something goes seriously wrong.

“We appreciate that going ‘By-The-Book’ doesn’t prevent getting caught out but by being more organised, motorists are greatly reducing their chances of being a ‘Breakdown Billy’.”