Hoot Guide to motorway breakdownsThe hardworking staff at Hoot have always known a thing or two about cheap car insurance - but today that knowledge is just the tip of a much larger iceberg. It's all down to little titbits of off-topic information which have a way of rubbing off on you in the motoring industry. Without being consciously aware of it, the Hoot team has spent the last few years soaking up all kinds of motoring facts and figures - everything from car repairs to penalty points - on top of all our car insurance know-how. Now, through the Hoot Guides, we're sharing that knowledge with you. Each one is stuffed full of useful tips and information, and as webpages they're freely accessible 24 hours a day, from anywhere in the world. So if you've got a car-related question, chances are the Hoot Guides have the answer. Car breakdowns are always a nightmare, but they also have the potential to be very dangerous if you don't know what you're doing. That's why we put together the Hoot Guide to breakdowns, which tells you what you need to do to stay safe if you get marooned on the verge or in a lay-by. However, there's one breakdown scenario which requires a entirely different series of actions on your part in order to stay safe. Because of that, we've made it the subject of our latest work: the Hoot Guide to motorway breakdowns. Get off the motorway
If your car develops a problem while you're on the motorway, you should take immediate action to get off it.
If possible, leave the motorway at the next junction or services exit and find yourself somewhere to park. From a safety point of view, this is infinitely preferable to stopping on the motorway itself. However, cars on the verge of a breakdown don't often give you enough notice to do this. If your engine fails suddenly, your tyre blows or some other serious fault occurs without warning, make instead for the left hand lane and the hard shoulder. Once you're off the carriageway, use whatever momentum remains to get as far to the left as possible - run it right up to the grass verge if you can. And leave your wheels pointing left when you stop to prevent the car rolling back into the path of passing traffic. And if at all possible, try to stop by an emergency phone. There's one of these every mile along the motorway, so at 70mph you'll be less than a minute away from the next one. Draw attention to yourself
Once you've stopped the car, turn on your hazard lights to warn approaching drivers of your presence. At night or when visibility is poor, turn your side lights on as well. However, you shouldn't put up a hazard warning triangle after a motorway breakdown.
Putting up the triangle is a great idea if you break down on regular roads, but on the motorway it involves a potentially very dangerous trip to the rear of the car - so in this case you're better off leaving it in the boot. Lastly, put a reflective jacket or vest on to make yourself more conspicuous when you get out of the car. If you don't already carry a reflective jacket or vest, it's high time you bought one. Get out of the car
It might not look very inviting, but the verge or bank at the leftmost side of the hard shoulder is definitely the best place to be following a breakdown.
A car parked or left on the hard shoulder tends to become a magnet for passing motorists to crash into. So once you've done your bit to warn them by lighting the car up, it's important to look after yourself - by moving a safe distance away. Always use the passenger-side door when exiting your vehicle. Exiting on the right-hand side will put you in between your car and the approaching traffic, which is an extremely dangerous place to be. In spite of this, a survey by car insurance firm Direct Line found that 14 percent of motorists admitted instinctively using the driver's door after a past breakdown - so try to keep your wits about you when it's your turn. Call for help
Just as you should avoid pitching a warning triangle on the hard shoulder, you should also resist the temptation to carry out any DIY repair work on your car. Trust us - you don't want to be poking around under the bonnet with traffic rushing by at 70mph and faster.
Instead, walk to the nearest emergency phone (never more than a mile away, as we've said) and call the police. It's preferable to contact them this way rather than with your mobile because they can use the number to pin-point your location. The operator will contact your breakdown service and let them know you need assistance, but you can call companies like the AA or RAC directly from the box if you prefer. Also, if you're a woman travelling alone, tell the police when reporting your breakdown and they'll usually send an officer out to make sure you're safe. Try a car insurance quote from Hoot
If you're in the market for a cheap car insurance policy, maybe Hoot can help - our premiums are typically up to 30 percent cheaper than other motor insurance firms'.
Hoot can afford to undercut our competitors' rates like this because of the unconventional approach we take to advertising. Most car insurance companies think TV and radio commercials are a justifiable expense because of the extra trade they bring in - but one look at the price tag was enough for us to know that we needed to try a different approach. We're more interested in rewarding our existing customers with cheap car insurance in any case, so we decided to scrap the advertising budget altogether. That meant we could substantially reduce the price of our motor insurance quotes. All we ask in return for these staggering savings is that you do a little advertising for us. So get out there and tell your friends about cheap car insurance from Hoot - it'll cost you nothing and it's already saved you a fortune. Get a fast quote now. 
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