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How do you get a stuck car out of the snow?

I grew up in California but moved to New York, so I’m new to dealing with snow in a normal, day-to-day capacity. Last week my car got stuck after a little blizzard, and I ended up missing work! I need to know what to do the next time this happens. What’s the best way to get a stuck car out of a pile of snow?

avatar
Joshua Levy · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
Getting your car stuck in the snow is a frustrating but common experience. Luckily, you have plenty of tricks you can use to get free, such as clearing a path or putting down sand. Here are our top tips for getting your car out of the snow:
  • Rock yourself out by quickly switching between drive and reverse. Continue rocking back and forth until you gain enough space and momentum to get unstuck! Be careful—shifting gears too much can overload your transmission. If it doesn’t work after a few tries, move to the next method.
  • Gain traction by putting wood planks, sand, or kitty litter under your tires. From there, you should be able to drive out! It’s a good idea for folks in snowy areas to keep a bag of sand or litter in their trunks for such occasions.
  • Dig yourself out with a snow shovel. This method takes some elbow grease, but you can shovel snow out from under your tires and around your car. When you’re done, you should have no problem driving away.
Unfortunately, getting stuck in the snow is a common problem when you live in cold areas. Occasionally, you could even get stuck in dangerous areas. Make sure your car is always stocked with water and
emergency supplies
, and consider getting roadside assistance with
Jerry
.
The Jerry app provides leading roadside assistance that connects you with their nationwide network of over 55,000 service providers. Membership includes services like towing, lockouts, jumpstarts, key replacements, and it could cost you as little as $4.16 a month!
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Jerry partners with more than 50 insurance companies, but our content is independently researched, written, and fact-checked by our team of editors and agents. We aren’t paid for reviews or other content.

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