What to keep in your car emergency kit
Keep a car emergency kit with a phone power bank and cable, a flashlight, jumper cables or a charged jump starter, reflective triangles, a tire gauge, a basic first aid kit, water, snacks, a warm layer, comfortable shoes and a printed card with your roadside and insurance numbers. Add a scraper and blanket for winter. Check it each season.
Why it matters: A small bag in the trunk turns a long wait into an inconvenience.
Steps
- Use one bag or crate that stays in the trunk and is easy to reach.
- Add power and light: a charged phone power bank with cable and a flashlight with spare batteries.
- Add start and fix items: jumper cables or a jump starter, a tire gauge and gloves.
- Add be-seen items: reflective triangles and a high-visibility vest.
- Add comfort items: water, snacks, a warm layer, a blanket and comfortable walking shoes.
- Add a basic first aid kit and a printed card with roadside, insurance and a trusted contact's numbers.
- Check it when the seasons change: recharge, swap water and snacks, add winter items.
Common mistakes
- Letting the power bank sit flat for a year.
- Relying on your phone's memory for every number.
- Driving in heels with no other shoes in the car.
Teach this to someone
A one page sheet for showing a friend, a teenager or a parent: what to say, what to show, and one question to check it landed.
Teach: What to keep in your car emergency kit
What to say
Keep a car emergency kit with a phone power bank and cable, a flashlight, jumper cables or a charged jump starter, reflective triangles, a tire gauge, a basic first aid kit, water, snacks, a warm layer, comfortable shoes and a printed card with your roadside and insurance numbers. Add a scraper and blanket for winter. Check it each season.
What to show
- Use one bag or crate that stays in the trunk and is easy to reach.
- Add power and light: a charged phone power bank with cable and a flashlight with spare batteries.
- Add start and fix items: jumper cables or a jump starter, a tire gauge and gloves.
- Add be-seen items: reflective triangles and a high-visibility vest.
- Add comfort items: water, snacks, a warm layer, a blanket and comfortable walking shoes.
- Add a basic first aid kit and a printed card with roadside, insurance and a trusted contact's numbers.
- Check it when the seasons change: recharge, swap water and snacks, add winter items.
Check question
Why keep a printed card of numbers?
Answer: Your phone may be dead or lost. Paper works when the phone does not.
Your checklist
Saved only in this browser.
Quick quiz
Three questions. Your score is saved only in this browser.
Related skills
Sources
- US national emergency preparedness guidance for vehicles, 2026. Reviewed September 28, 2026.
Written in our own words from the sources above. It is general information, not advice for your situation; where a professional, your doctor or your lease says something different, follow them.
Last reviewed . First published .