Nowhere to hide in your house? Try your car

While very little travelling is allowed during lockdown, motorists are not neglecting their cars. In fact, research in the United Kingdom is anything to go by, cars have given many people much-needed solace during the ongoing ”house arrest”.

A survey involving 2 000 drivers conducted by Czech carmaker Skoda determined that over a million motorists have retreated to their parked cars to get some time alone away from their families. In London, 23% of motorists admitted to have used their stationary vehicles as an escape route in some way or the other.

With 39% of UK motorists currently working from home, cars have come in handy as a makeshift office as an alternative to their living rooms. One in eight people has considered utilising their cars as office space, as 26% have difficulty finding a quiet place to focus in their homes and 32% complain of back ache due to uncomfortable seating while working.

UK motorists have admitted retreating to their parked cars to use their mobile devices. Picture: iStock

But working is only one of the things people are using their parked cars for. Some retreat to their rides purely to use the car’s entertainment system, other to use their mobile devices to watch TV, some admit to taking a nap or others create an interim playground for their children.

Some even admitted to just go and sit in the driver’s seat to go and dream about their most craved post-lockdown trips. Two thirds of all UK motorists miss driving their cars, with the sense of freedom it provides the thing they miss most. In Wales, almost a third admitted singing along to their favourite songs is the thing they miss the most about driving.

Ironically, even with their cars being stationary for most of the time, vehicle owners also admit to taking greater care of their cars during lockdown. As much as 22% of motorists admit to washing their car more regularly, with one in every five also cleaning the interior more often than usual. In London, a staggering 17% of motorists indicated that they wash their cars once a day since lockdown in the UK began in March.

“The research highlights that while we may not be able to currently use our cars in the traditional fashion, they still play a hugely significant part in our everyday lives,” a spokesperson from Skoda UK said.

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