I admit that I never really thought too much about this sort of product, assuming it wouldn’t necessarily be that effective. How wrong I have been. In the past I would pre-heat the electric vehicle by using its automatic climate control feature when it was plugged in overnight. Before with a diesel car it required an engine start with full front windshield heating on whilst simultaneously using an ice scraper to shift the ice.

What this blanket does is it substantially replaces physical ice scraping or using anti-freeze chemical sprays or using the car’s heating to defrost the front windshield or a combination of these. It saves effort, time, chemicals and/or use of energy (from electricity, petrol or diesel).

A heavy frost in the past might take up to ten minutes of ice scraping whilst the engine is running and producing foul smelling fumes and emissions. This can all be saved with a blanket being on the windscreen overnight: the morning routine becomes removal of the blanket, shaking off excess ice and placement in the boot taking under 30 seconds. The windscreen is completely clear and the only additional effort may be to clear the side mirrors and side windows and put on the rear windscreen heater. Driving off can be done safely after only a couple of minutes.

In terms of cost, this sort of product is usually less than £10 in the UK (many are in the £3-£5 range). It is made mainly of plastic (reflective outer foil surface and foam inside layer to sit against the glass) and may come with up to 3 years guarantee. By comparison, a typical petrol or diesel car may use between 0.1 litres to 0.5 litres whilst idling for 10-15 minutes, corresponding to £0.13 to £0.75 in fuel costs alone (UK prices). Evidently you only need around ten or so frosts for this product to save you money. What’s more impressive is the reduction in pollution and carbon dioxide emissions that this cheap and convenient product can deliver. Those cold mornings where the air is thick with exhaust fumes whilst you and your neighbours de-ice your cars could easily be a thing of the past. It has clear health and environmental benefits.

I wish I had got one earlier.

Motoring organisations will advise motorists to start the engine and put the windscreen heaters on, sensibly reminding motorists to ensure the windscreen wipers are off before starting up. They will caution against using hot water and certainly not water from a kettle since this could crack the glass (thermal shock) and will drip down and leave sheet ice under the car when it freezes up shortly afterwards. Don’t drive off before there is full visibility through windows and mirrors and ensure lights (and cameras) are cleaned. If there has been heavy snowfall, make sure most of the snow is cleared off the roof and surfaces so that the car does not shed quantities of snow and ice when driving on prepared and gritted roads. If the conditions are bad then avoid the journey unless absolutely necessary and stay safe.