Driving in snow and ice is not really an "advanced driving" skill. If you don't know how to do it, you really shouldn't have a driving licence.
Unfortunately, the vast majority of people on the roads seem quite eager to demonstrate just how little they know about driving in these conditions. Given enough time, I suppose they will have their licence taken away from them anyway.
Here are the basic tips for driving in snow and ice that everybody knows, everybody tells everybody else, yet so many people seem unable to do.
Before you get in your car. Take the snow off.
I don't mean clear a little section on your windscreen so that you can see out. I mean clear the car. Clear ALL of the windows completely. And don't just use your wipers to clear the windscreen, get it ALL off with your hands or a brush/ice scraper. Snow moves as you are driving along so if you don't clear all of each window, it will move so that you can no longer see out of it.
Next, clear your bonnet. The last thing you need as you are driving along is a blizzard of snow blown up right in front of your windscreen hampering your visibility. Then clear your roof. the last thing OTHER drivers need is a blizzard in front of them when if blows off your roof.
And of course, clear your headlights. Because you're going to switch them on aren't you. Aren't you!?
So, you've cleared your car of snow. What about actually driving rules?
Firstly, stop bloody spinning your wheels. It's bad for your wheels, it's bad for your grip and it's fatal for your control. Don't do it ever! I don't care how steep the hill is, I don't care how icy it is, as soon as you notice the wheels starting to spin, stop. Just stop....and think.
Rule number 1 of driving in snow and ice is: start in at least 2nd gear, use as little accelerator/gas as possible, and of course, drive slowly. There is no such thing as power when driving in snow and ice. You cannot power through a hill, you cannot power through a snow drift.
You don't need to understand why this principle works. You don't need to agree with it. But if you disagree with this method, you are wrong. Once you have got a PhD in physics, people might start to listen to you if you choose to disagree with this method. Until then, you are wrong. Just follow the rule. Don't spin your wheels.
If you get caught not following that rule, you could be prosecuted for dangerous driving. It's that bad.
OK, so you're following the first rule. Now, leave a huge gap between you and the car in front. Of course, you always leave a 2 second gap between you and the car in front anyway because you are a sensible driver. But this is snow and ice. You need to leave at least a 5 second gap. Unlike tarmac, you cannot reliably predict the amount of grip you will have a few metres in front of your car. It may look exactly the same as the bit you are currently driving on. But, a couple of metres ahead, could be black ice, white ice, or snow covering black ice. Or a huge ditch!
The distance you think it will take you to stop your car is wrong. Double it. When driving in snow, a good rule of thumb is to drive so that you think that you can stop half way between where you are and where the hazard is. Because, your assumptions in snow and ice are usually wrong, it'll usually take a bit longer than you expect to stop, so give it double.
And when you need to stop quickly. Don't.
A couple of days ago a young girl was overtaking a parked van in snow just as I was driving towards her in the opposite direction. I could see the problem that was about to occur so I came to a controlled stop. The other girl decided that slamming on the brakes and turning the wheel full lock was a more appropriate course of action. Needless to say, she neither stopped nor turned as she had planned.
The only reason a crash was averted was because I had stopped leaving enough space for her to slide around like a moron.
Stop in a controlled fashion. Don't turn sharply. and if you notice that your wheels are sliding, do something about it. Don't just close your eyes and scream. Come off the brakes and apply them again a little bit less aggressively. Repeat until you stop sliding and come to a controlled stop.
As an alternative (or addition) to these basic steps, you could of course do some simple maths. Your insurance excess is likely to be around £250 on average. A pair of snow chains* or snow socks will be £50, or up to £100 for larger tyres. The amount of grip that you get with either of these products is incredible. I would rather spend £50 and not crash, than take the risk and end up with a lot of hassle and a lot more expense.
Snow tyres* are another option. A slightly more expensive initial outlay, but it reduces the wear and tear on your summer tyres, so over the life of all of the tyres, the costs cancel out.
