Clever method for keeping car seats cool during the UK heatwave – not aircon

When scorching temperatures and heatwaves strike, people will go to extraordinary lengths to stay comfortable. The record for the hottest May temperature in the UK was broken for the second consecutive day on Tuesday, with 35C being recorded at two locations in the UK, Heathrow and Kew Gardens in London.

Large swathes of the UK remain under the Met Office and UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) amber health warning, covering the south-west, south-east, London, East and West Midlands and the west of England, while the north-west and the north-east have been issued a yellow warning.

All alerts remain in place until 5pm and caution the public about the effects of hot weather, such as increased use of health care services by vulnerable populations and an increase in risk to health for people over 65 years or with pre-existing health conditions.

Britons are left battling to keep both their homes and vehicles cool, with cars effectively turning into greenhouses on wheels owing to their abundance of windows.

Each vehicle presents its own unique challenges, as a wide variety of materials can be used on upholstered seats, including fabric and leather.

In sweltering conditions, the latter becomes unbearably hot due to leather’s natural heat-absorbing properties.

As leather lacks the breathability of cloth, it traps heat directly and rapidly conducts it to your skin, resulting in an uncomfortable burning or sticky sensation. This is precisely why many drivers drape jackets, blankets or cloths over their car seats when the vehicle is parked and not in use.

The technique is actually endorsed by the RAC, otherwise known as the Royal Automobile Club, who confirm it will prevent seats from ‘becoming a hotplate’.

An expert said: “Cover the seats with a blanket or jacket. If your vehicle has leather seats then the summer sun will transform the surface of the seat into a hotplate.

“Keep them cool by covering them up, especially if you have to park in direct sunlight.”

A woman who grew up in Arizona, USA, a state renowned for its year-round sunshine and fierce, dry summer heat, vouched for the trick’s effectiveness on her TikTok account.

She said: “There is nothing worse than burning the back of your legs on the car seat. This is exactly why I keep a seat hoodie in my car. “