Bad Driving Habits

Whether we like to admit it or not, we all have our bad habits. Whilst biting your nails or slurping your soup might be annoying for your colleagues or significant others, they aren’t things that could see you in trouble with the law.

While they might seem innocent enough to you, there are certain bad habits that are illegal when behind the wheel. Are you guilty of any of these bad driving habits?

Checking your sat-nav

It’s sometimes difficult to imagine how people got around without the convenience of a sat-nav. But do you make sure your sat-nav is secure and stable and has the correct address in before you set off? If you attempt to enter your destination or try to place your sat-nav on your windscreen, then you could be breaking the law. While you are allowed to use sat-navs when driving, you could get stopped and penalised if the police think you’re not in control of your vehicle while doing so.

Eating while driving

Whether it’s a quick snack or having your lunch on the go, you’ve probably eaten at the wheel at some time in your driving life. It isn’t illegal to eat behind the wheel, however, you could be prosecuted for careless driving if your snacking leads you to lose control of the car.

Driving off with snow on your roof

With our British weather, we’re not always guaranteed snow in the winter months. And that may be why motorists aren’t aware of this bad winter habit. Driving with snow on your roof could result in you having a run in with the law as it shows you haven’t removed everything that could fall from your car and cause an accident. The snow could also fall down onto your windows, meaning you haven’t properly cleared every glass panel on your vehicle.

Applying make-up at the wheel

You might think it’s harmless multitasking when you’re running late for work but turning your car into a beauty salon could lead to a prosecution for driving without due care and attention or, as it is more commonly referred to, careless driving.


Not only is throwing your rubbish out of your car window bad for the environment and poor motoring etiquette, you could also face a fine for doing so.


If you have passengers under the age of 18, smoking in your car is now illegal.

Flashing your headlights

Have you ever flashed your lights at someone in a bout of road rage urging them to move lane? If so, it might be worth knowing that flashing your headlights is only permitted when alerting other road users of your presence.

Why not make it a late new year’s resolution to try and reduce or stop one of the habits? So the next time you’re in a rush on a cold wintery morning take the time to ensure you’ve properly cleared your windows of any snow or frost, or why not at the end of a journey take five minutes to pick any items of rubbish out of the car and place in the nearest bin.

For more information regarding our policies or to renew your car insurance with masterquote, click here or speak to a member of the team on 02394 003 173.