When the mercury drops, snow starts falling and black ice forms on the roads, learner drivers should stay off the road.

AA Driving School Education and Industry Relationship Manager Karen Dickson says while learner drivers need to experience a comprehensive range of road conditions to build quality experience, when things really get bad, it’s best to avoid driving all together.

“Over the last few days we’ve already seen the impact extremely cold conditions can have when even experienced motorists attempt to navigate the roads. On one day there were 25 crashes in Christchurch alone mostly attributed to sliding on black ice,” Mrs Dickson says.

“Inexperience exacerbates the risks on our roads, so when conditions are extreme, the best advice is to stay off them.”

Mrs Dickson says new drivers have a minimum of six months on a learner licence which means, with professional training and good supervised practice opportunities, many different road environments will be experienced.

“The impact that even a minor crash can have on the confidence of any driver can be high and often more so for learners. Good skills will come with practice, but driving is like learning anything else – you wouldn’t jump in the deep end of the pool if you didn’t know how to swim first.”

Mrs Dickson says when roads become more hazardous, if people have to head out, all drivers should be taking it slower than usual.

“Reduced speed minimises the risk of serious injury or death if something does go wrong.”