UK drivers have been warned over common winter driving mistakes that could see them hit with up to £30,000 in fines.

This comes as much of the country deal with freezing temperatures, ice, and even snow.

The experts over at the car and van leasing company, Vanarama are urging drivers to take care of their cars this season to avoid some hefty penalties.

With this in mind, here are ten driving mistakes that could see drivers hit with thousands in fines this winter.

Ten winter driving mistakes that could see drivers hit with up to £30,000 in fines

The ten driving mistakes and the maximum fines for each are as follows:

  1. Low tread on tyres - £10,000
  2. Careless driving - £5000
  3. Driving through puddles - £5000
  4. Driving in inadequate footwear - £5000
  5. Snow on car roof - £2500
  6. Snow on car lights or number plate - £1000
  7. Driving with low visibility - £1000
  8. Defective exterior lights - £1000
  9. Engine on while parked on a public road - £40
  10. Misuse of foglights - £30
     

How to avoid driving penalties this winter

Vanarama has made some recommendations on how you can avoid these hefty fines:

1. Carry out regular maintenance to avoid up to £11,000 in fines

Maintaining your car so that it is suitable for the winter is one way to avoid big fines.

Vanarama recommends that you keep tabs on your tyre depth as this could result in up to £2500 in fines for each tyre.

One way this can be checked is by placing a 20p coin between the grooves of the tyre. If the border of the coin is obscured, then your tyre is likely above the legal tread depth of 1.6 mm.

You should also make sure your car lights are working as defective ones can result in fines of up to £1000.

2. Be mindful on the road to avoid over £10,000 in fines

Careless driving, driving through puddles, having the engine on while parked, and misusing a foglight can land you over £10,000 in fines.

Under the law, drivers must be mindful of the road, with those found guilty of careless driving eligible for up to £5000 in fines.

While splashing pedestrians with a roadside puddle is considered rude, it is also illegal and could see the driver fined another £5000.

3. Carry out checks before starting your journey to avoid £9500 in fines

It is vital that drivers check their cars before journeys as snow can impact the motorists' ability to drive safely and see them hit with penalties by the law.

Checking to make sure that there is no snow on the car roof and that snow is not covering the licence plate can help drivers avoid £3500 in fines.

Driving with inadequate footwear is also an offence and can land motorists up to £5000 in fines, so it is always worth checking this before you drive off.

Having a partially obstructed windscreen is also punishable with a fine of £1000, so make sure there is no snow covering your front window.

More on Vanarama's research can be found on the Vanarama website.