Driving in winter is no picnic with motorists having to contend with more wet and windy conditions - not to mention the added complications caused by cold weather.

As drivers are warned to be more cautious on the roads, experts have also urged Brits to be aware of not leaving certain items in their vehicles overnight.

From medication to tech, leaving these objects in your car could lead you to damage the item itself or even your car.

To help us out, the motoring experts at CarMoney have rounded up your very own checklist to make sure that you don't leave any of these things in your car overnight this winter.

Don't leave these 8 items in your car overnight this winter

Medication can become ineffective in low temperatures

Many people may leave their medication in the car as a reminder to take them on their daily commute.

However, leaving prescribed medications in the car overnight during the winter may hinder their effectiveness, and even render them dangerous to take.

Hard pills and capsules should be affected the least, but the active chemicals in liquids and injectable medications can be altered by the low temperature and can degrade quickly.

You should always store your medication at room temperature to maintain its potency.

Glasses can become warped and break

If you leave your glasses or even sunglasses in the car during the winter months, you may find that the frames become more vulnerable to breaking.

Extremely cold temperatures can damage the lenses by causing them to expand and contract, resulting in a distorted or warped vision.

Compromised driving glasses can be dangerous when you need them to have a clear vision of the road.

Keeping your glasses in a case or bringing them inside after your journey is one way you can combat this.

Musical instruments may be prone to damage

Whether it's your own musical instrument or from your kids' music lesson, always take the instrument inside to avoid inadvertently damaging it in a cold snap.

Violins, guitars and cellos, plus other wooden instruments are vulnerable to shrinking and expanding in cold temperatures, which will damage or break the glue joints, making them out of tune at best or at worst, unplayable.

Spare batteries may burst and leak in the cold

If you’re tempted to leave a pack of AA batteries in the car ‘just in case’, then think again.

You’ll find that your batteries will run out of energy sooner due to the cold temperature affecting the electrochemical reactions within the battery, and alkaline batteries can even burst and leak.

You should opt for wind-up torches for winter car emergencies instead of carrying extra batteries.

Laptops & mobile phones can have internal batteries compromised
 

Leaving laptops and other electronic devices is also a bad item due to their internal lithium-ion batteries becoming compromised by the cold weather.

Expensive electronics should also be moved out of the car overnight due to security reasons.

Aerosols become destabilised in extreme cold temperatures
 

It may be tempting to keep a can of deodorant in the glove compartment for deodorising on the go but aerosols can become dangerous with exposure to extreme cold.

A low temperature can cause the pressurised cans to destabilise, resulting in cracks or even an explosion of the can.

The same goes for hairspray, spray paint or WD-40. 

Canned food can become inedible if the seal breaks
 

Freezing temperatures can do the opposite of keeping food fresh when it causes canned food to freeze and expand, breaking the seal.

If the seal is not broken after being left overnight in freezing temperatures, it may be possible to defrost the tin of food in the fridge but if it looks or smells bad, do not eat it.


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Fizzy drinks may burst and cause damage to your upholstery
 

Your favourite can of pop should never be left in a car overnight during sub zero temperatures as you’ll find that it can create quite the mess when the can explodes.

The frozen carbonated beverage will expand as it freezes, and put pressure on the dissolved CO2 inside, causing the can to explode or fizz more when opened manually.

Instead, you should keep cartons of juice or bottled water in your car if you need emergency drinks.