Be Ready: Your 2026 Roadside Emergency Plan

A roadside emergency plan is a short, written set of decisions: who you will call, what you carry, where your documents are and what each person does first. In a collision, a breakdown on a highway or a storm, stress makes it hard to think, and a plan replaces guesswork with steps.

Public Safety Canada's Get Prepared guidance asks households to be ready to look after themselves for at least 72 hours in an emergency. This 2026 plan applies that idea to your vehicle and your daily drive.

Save these in every household member's phone and keep a printed copy in the glovebox in case a phone is dead or damaged. Add an emergency contact to your phone's lock-screen medical ID.

• 911 for injuries, fire, smoke or a vehicle in a live lane
• Your local police non-emergency number for collisions without injuries
• Your insurer's claims line and your policy number
• A roadside help request saved on your phone's home screen
• Two emergency contacts: one local and one outside your area
• Your mechanic or preferred repair shop, as a tow destination

Keep the kit in a bag or bin in the trunk so it stays together. Check it at the start of each season and replace water, snacks and batteries.

• Flashlight with spare batteries, or a hand-crank light
• Phone charging cable and a charged power bank
• Booster cables or a jump pack
• Warning triangles and a reflective vest
• First-aid kit and any personal medication
• Water and non-perishable food
• Blanket, warm clothing and gloves (and a winter set from November to April)
• Ice scraper, snow brush, small shovel and traction mats
• Pen, paper and a printed copy of your contact list

• Driver's licence, vehicle ownership (permit) and insurance pink slip, as required in Ontario
• Photos of those documents in a secure folder on your phone
• Vehicle make, model, colour, plate and drivetrain (AWD, electric or hybrid): dispatch uses this to send the right equipment
• Medical information for regular passengers, including allergies and medication

1. 01Get out of traffic if the vehicle can move: shoulder, side street or parking lot
2. 02Turn on hazard lights and, at night, the interior light
3. 03Check for injuries. If anyone is injured, there is a fire or smoke, or the vehicle blocks a live lane, call 911 first.
4. 04Decide whether to stay in the vehicle: on a fast highway, staying buckled in is often safer; exit away from traffic if there is fire, smoke or a risk of being struck
5. 05Pinpoint your location: road, direction, nearest exit, intersection or kilometre marker
6. 06Request help with your location, vehicle details and what happened
7. 07Call or message your emergency contact with where you are and who is coming

• Agree who picks up children or relatives if a driver is stranded
• Teach new and teen drivers the first-ten-minutes steps and where the kit is
• Make sure every driver knows how to turn on hazards, find the spare and open the hood
• Keep wireless public alerts enabled on your phones: Canada's Alert Ready system sends warnings for severe weather and other emergencies

Use the spring and fall clock changes as reminders: update phone numbers and policy details, replace expired food, water and medication, test the flashlight and power bank, and swap seasonal items in the kit. A plan that is out of date is almost as unhelpful as no plan.