Clever Car Hacks Every Busy Parent Should Know

Life can be complicated for busy parents. Another day means another school run, football practice, ballet lessons, sleepovers, after-school club runs - and that’s without even factoring in the shopping, your work, and all the other things you need to do to keep everyone’s lives running on track. You can make your life a little easier with some small organisational strategies - particularly when it comes to your time on the road. Here, we’ll go through a range of clever car hacks that will help maximise space, minimise clutter, and boost safety:

Keeping the Car Tidy

Basic car tidiness doesn’t just make your car more comfortable and safer to drive. It can also significantly improve your car’s value. When selling your car, people peering into the interior will pay more if that interior has clearly been kept clean and cared for. When you sell your car online, viewers will want to swipe through photos of a clutter-free, well-organised interior.

But how can you keep the car tidy when every day you’re using it to transport everything from football kits to grocery hauls? Well, partly it’s a matter of getting into a routine. Build up the habit of properly emptying the car when you leave it, and maybe even create an organised space in the garage or inside the front door to receive the stuff you bring in from the car. Within the car itself, back seat organisers, car bins, and boot boxes can be game-changing for keeping the clutter at bay.

Food and Drink Organisation

A lot of us mindlessly eat and drink as we’re driving. Often, it is a good idea to have a snack while you’re on the road, and it’s always important to stay hydrated - but car snacks can quickly get out of control if you don’t keep them properly organised.

Rather than mindlessly eating on the go, be mindful of your driving and eating behaviour. Pack car snacks in small, resealable containers before long journeys, and put wrappers either in a car bin or back in the containers. This will keep food crumbs off the seats and ease the temptation to stop for unhealthy snacks at petrol stations along the way.

Car Cleaning Tricks

Keeping baby wipes in the car can make quick clean-up easy. They're useful for everything from mopping up spills to wiping sticky hands and faces.

An inflatable pool mattress can be used as a protector for the boot when transporting dirty items or it can lay flat on the back seat if you have muddy kids or pets to transport.

Consider keeping a small hand-held hoover in the boot of the car for instant access to easy cleaning.

Maximising Space

When space is limited, be wise about how you use your car's interior. If you have a smaller car, consider using roof rails and a rooftop storage box to maximise space in the cabin. This can be particularly helpful during family trips or long journeys. For added ease, you can now get rooftop storage boxes which are streamlined and come with dual-sided opening.

Safety Hacks

A clip-on mirror in the middle of your windscreen lets you see what’s going on in the back seats without turning around – a lifesaver for when your attention needs to be fully on the road but you also need to parent unruly kids.

For super-chaotic journeys, consider a backseat camera that feeds directly to the front console. This gives you a constant view of your children, keeping them safe and you sane.

A door sticker with your child’s name and emergency contact information is a great idea. If a collision should occur, emergency personnel can identify your child and make quick contact with you.

All these handy car hacks are designed to help you transform your vehicle into a parent sanctuary. Rather than the state of your car taking up valuable brainspace, you can relax in the knowledge that your vehicle is safe, organised, and will be easy to sell on when it comes to upgrade.