If you live in the UK, you’ll have seen rain. Hell, you’ve probably seen rain this week, or maybe even today. And while annoying, it can also prove dangerous.

Driving in the rain has a number of different dangers attached, but one of the biggest and most overlooked is the simple lack of visibility.

If you’re looking at new or second hand cars for sale at the moment, you might be tempted to look for daytime running lights, LED matrix ones and all sorts of electronic gadgetry to improve your vision.

But have you considered saving yourself a load of wonga by simply buying some rain repellent?

In case you were wondering, rain repellent is a solution applied to a car’s glass or bodywork that creates a hydrophobic layer that makes it hard for rain to stick to. It’s sold in major online retailers, supermarkets, and car-specific shops. Prices start from about £5 and they’re broadly able to be applied in minutes, not hours.

Sound good? Below we highlight five benefits for using rain repellent on your windscreen this winter.

• Improved visibility

Rain repellent broadly keeps rain from congregating on your windscreen. A good rain repellent will see rain beading straight off the windscreen, improving your visibility. It’s worth noting here that cheap repellent can smear glass, so it’s worth doing some research before buying.

• Prolong wiper blades

With any luck, a good rain repellent will see water beading quickly away from your windscreen. This generally gives your windscreen wipers less work to do, which makes them last longer. Some rain repellents even boast that you won’t need wipers at certain speeds, but we wouldn’t fancy testing it out.

3) Protection from poor weather

Rain repellents can help slow down build-up of ice on your windscreen. In the coldest, darkest winter you’ll still need to deploy your scraper, but it won’t take quite as much work.

4) Classic car protection

Windscreen wipers in classic cars can be a bit rubbish. Generally, they can be quite slow or unreliable or both! So anything to take the strain away from the wipers in the wind and rain is a benefit here.

5) Parking cameras

Do you know what’s a massive pain? Getting out of your car in the sleet and rain to give your rear reversing camera a quick wipe with your sleeve. Rain repellent can keep your camera cleaner for longer, and keep you within the warm confines of your car.

What about outside of the car?

It’s entirely possible to apply them to any glass surface, providing extra visibility and keeping you safe. This is useful with goggles and helmets of all varieties.

One brand of repellent, Rain-X, even claims that its products can be used on shower doors and windows.