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Getting Out of the Snow When You’re Stuck

You get in your car and suddenly you realize you’re stuck. The snow is up to the tires and they’re just spinning away. What do you do?

Shovel out
The first step is to dig out your car and try to make it so you can see all the tires. Remove as much snow as you possibly can.

Don’t panic and start spinning the wheels
Stomping on the gas and spinning the wheels is just going to make it worse.

Get gritty with it
Put something down around your tires like salt, kitty litter or sand. This will help you get traction when you try to back up or move forward.

Shift your car into the lowest gear
Putting it in the lowest gear will give your tires more power and make sure they spin slower. This will lower the risk that your tires dig deeper into the snow.

Make sure your tires are pointed straight
It’s easier for your car to move straight out of whatever you’re stuck in. That said, you may need to move your tires around a bit until they are able to get traction and once they do, straighten them out again.

Rock it, don’t stop it
Next, you want to do something called rocking it. This is where you roll the vehicle forward, put it in reverse, roll it backward, and then shift to drive and roll forward. This uses your car’s momentum to get you out of the snow you’re stuck in. Once the car is unstuck and rolling in one direction, keep going until you’re out of the snow.

Let a little air out
Another thing you can try is to let a bit of air out of the tires. This creates more surface area on your tire which can help give you more grip to get out. Just don’t forget to reinflate your tires later! Until you get the tires reinflated, keep the speed down so you don’t ruin your tires.

We hope these tips will help you get out of the snow if you’re ever stuck. Don’t get stuck with the wrong insurance coverage when you could get the correct coverage on your auto insurance in Massachusetts with MAPFRE. Get a fast, free quote today to see how much you could save!

Please Note: This is meant only to provide general information about commonly available insurance coverages. Except as expressly noted, this content is not intended to describe any specific coverage offered by MAPFRE Insurance. No coverage is provided, bound or guaranteed by this article. Available coverages, credits and discounts vary from state to state and are subject to eligibility criteria and policy terms/conditions, which will control in the event of conflict between this article and your insurance policy. For information about your policy, please review your individual policy contract and speak with your insurance representative.

MAPFRE Insurance® is a brand and service mark of MAPFRE U.S.A. Corp. and its affiliates, American Commerce Insurance CompanySM (Cal. COA 4928-8); Citation Insurance CompanySM; The Commerce Insurance CompanySM; Commerce West Insurance CompanySM (Cal. COA 1372-2); and MAPFRE Insurance CompanySM (Cal. COA 3039-5). Not all products available in all states.

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