Leaving your car unattended while it defrosts could have huge legal consequences

Good morning commuters of Britain, you might have noticed that it's a smidge chilly out there today and your car has bits of ice on it which weren't there when you bought the thing.

Whether your motor is covered in a fine film of frost or some actual solid chunks of ice you'll need to crack on with with defrosting it since there's no way you're driving while all your windows are iced up.

The Met Office has put yellow ice warnings (yellow indicating severity, not the presence of frozen urine) all over the UK today (10 January) which means drivers must be extra careful in all aspects of their journey.

Since defrosting a car can take a bit of time, the temptation is surely there to leave the engine running and let that defrost the car for you while you pop back inside for your morning cup of coffee.

Yeah, that's going to need a few minutes. (Getty Stock Photo)

However, you really shouldn't do that as there could be legal consequences both for you and your car insurance.

Insurance specialist Matthew Stokes of Motorcycle Insurance has warned that icy weather is the prime time to end up in some sort of trouble because you left your car defrosting.

On top of that you could end up invalidating your insurance if you make a simple slip up at this point, so be aware of what your responsibilities are.

He said: "Whilst it is not illegal to drive in bad weather, drivers can have their policies suspended due to a number of reasons, including leaving a car unattended whilst switched on or forgetting to clean the snow off the windscreen, number plate and roof.

"With cold weather and snow predicted this winter, people should be very careful if they have to venture out in bad weather and should only do so if absolutely necessary."

"A red warning does not mean that your insurance will be invalid if you drive, but it could be if you are not driving within the law."

I'm sure you understand why you can't drive with your windscreen looking like that (Getty Stock Photo)

So don't leave your car unattended while the engine is on and actually supervise the defrosting process so you know that all the bits which need to be uncovered are visible.

The Highway Code is not on your side in this argument either as it says that a driver 'must not leave a vehicle engine running unnecessarily while that vehicle is stationary on a public road', so if you're not parked on a drive while defrosting then you're breaking the law.

There are other dangers associated with setting your car running and just leaving it as well, as you're open to something called 'frost jacking'.

This is where someone simply gets into a defrosting car that has been left running but is unattended and simply drives it away.

I know you don't want to stand out in the cold watching your car defrost but it's better than suffering the consequences of leaving it unsupervised.