We wanted to let you know how much we appreciate you as faithful policyholders, neighbours and friends. We hope you have a wonderful time with friends, family and loved ones. However, before you slip into your comfies and kick back for the Christmas break we want to give you a bit of seasonal safety advice. It’s what we do!
Here are just a handful of seasonal holiday tips to make sure you and your loved ones have a happy and safe Christmas holiday.
Winter car kit
These items should be kept in your car kit for winter incidents ranging from a car stuck in the snow to a car accident: A First Aid Kit, Non-Perishable Food and Water, Blankets, Extra Clothes and a Change of Footwear, A Flashlight and Batteries, Jumper Cables and a Tow Chain or Rope.
Christmas lights
Health Canada is warning of the potential for many festive holiday lights to overheat resulting in fires or electric shock. They began a national sampling and evaluation project after receiving multiple different reports regarding holiday lights malfunctioning. So far the project has found six different products from four different stores across Canada. The companies have since put out recalls for their products.
If you have any of these products you can find more information on what you can do on the Health Canada website http://www.healthycanadians.gc.ca/
Water your tree
The longer a tree has been cut, the greater the fire hazard. So by Christmas, many trees are dry and quite susceptible to burning. Simple things can be done to prevent Christmas tree fires, such as not overloading electrical outlets, not using too many light strings, and unplugging lights when leaving the home. A dry tree burns three to four times faster than a watered tree. So keep it watered!
Designated driver
We cannot express enough the importance of not drinking and driving. Not just over the holidays, but at anytime. If you know you are going to a party or event where you plan on drinking alcohol organise a designated driver ahead of time, or have the phone number of a designated driving service on your phone. It’s never worth the risk.
Sources: insurancehotline.com, globalnews.ca