Sanitize Your Family Car After Sickness: Learn How to Keep Your Car Clean of Germs

With flu season in full swing, even if your family gets lucky enough to bypass the flu this year, there’s a chance that one or more of you may come down with a cold. And between driving to the doctor’s office for an appointment, heading to the drugstore for medicine or the grocery store for tissues and chicken noodle soup, it’s likely that your family car will become infested with germs. So how do you keep your car clean of germs and sickness? Whether during or after a bug hits your home, follow these four simple D’s to make sure your car won’t get “car sick” and keep those pesky germs from lingering much longer.

• Disinfect. When you’re sick, germs are continually being spread to everything you touch. That’s why it’s important to disinfect any surfaces of your car that have been touched by sick hands during an illness. For starters, grab the disinfectant spray and do a thorough wipe-down of all interior car surfaces. An article on the website ListMyFive.com goes on to explain that you should also pay special attention to the steering wheel, the radio knobs, door handles, buttons and seat belts, as those are some of the most commonly touched areas of a car.

• Deep clean. After you’ve taken care of disinfecting areas that have been repeatedly touched during an illness, you should consider deep cleaning the rest of your car. This could mean vacuuming the seat cushions and floor mats, removing car seat covers and throwing them in the washing machine and even wiping down windows and cup holders. Germs can continue to fester even on these less commonly touched surfaces, so be thorough and clean them too.

• Declutter. There’s no doubt that if you have little ones around, your car is not only full of car seats, but also of various kid clutter. From sippy cups and snacks to toys, books and strollers, these items also must be cleaned after a cold or the flu. For starters, remove all drink cups and snack containers. These should be washed before using again. Then, remove all toys and books and give them a thorough wipe-down with some kind of anti-bacterial sanitizer or disinfectant. Big items like strollers and sporting equipment should also be cleaned before returning to the car. Even if you only have time to wipe down stroller handles, doing this is better than doing nothing to prevent the spread of old germs.

• Detoxify. After your car has been disinfected, deep cleaned and decluttered is the ideal time to detoxify the stale air within your vehicle. Weather permitting, open car windows and doors for a while to air out the germs. If leaving the windows and doors open for a bit isn’t an option due to weather or safety, take a spin around the block with the windows down to speed up the flow of clean air.

These four tips are a great start when it comes to sanitizing your car after sickness in your family. Don’t let your car get sick by following these four D’s today. Another way to ensure the health of your family car is to make sure you have the right automobile insurance for your family’s busy lifestyle. So, find an insurance company you can trust and request a quote today.

Sponsored content was created and provided by Nationwide Insurance.

By: Micah Moon