What this car emergency kit list is for
It’s a packing list for supplies kept in your car that you fill out online, then download as either a CSV or PDF. It remember your vehicle and who packed the kit. It tracks whether this is an all-year kit or an all-year kit with winter extras. It also tracks the Packers sign-off and what was packed, missing, or N/A for each supply.
Other things: Jumper Cables, flares or a reflective triangle, Ice Scraper, Cell Phone Charger For Your Car, Blanket, Map, Sand or Cat Litter for Traction. (from Ready.gov Car Safety) Other things include jumper cables, flares or a reflective triangle, an ice scraper, a cell phone charger for your car, a blanket, a map, and sand or cat litter for traction.
Households should "keep emergency supplies in their vehicles in the event that they become stranded," says Ready.gov Build A Kit, which is essentially using their home kit checklist again. The kit include water, food, a radio, a flashlight, first aid, a whistle, sanitation supplies, local maps, and a phone with a backup battery and chargers.
What it is not
- It is not a road-trip prep list for house shutoff, route planning, or travel documents you take out of the house. Those belong on a separate trip-prep sheet. This form only asks whether copies and supplies stay in the vehicle.
- It is not 49 CFR 393.95 emergency equipment on a commercial power unit. A CMV must carry a rated extinguisher and either three FMVSS 125 triangles or (where flame devices are allowed) at least six fusees. Record that on the CMV pre-trip inspection checklist or the CMV post-trip DVIR. This household kit uses the Ready.gov / Red Cross / NHTSA / FEMA lists, not that federal CMV count.
- It is not a walkaround of lamps, brakes, or tires, and it is not a driver vehicle inspection report.
- It is not a title, registration, bill of sale, or other legal instrument. The documents block is copies in a waterproof pouch, not originals you would file with a state.
How to fill each block
The American Red Cross car kit adds a tire repair kit and inflator, a shovel and sand, and a portable power bank. NHTSA's winter driving tips and the FEMA winter vehicle kit follow those same ideas. They include a six-month refresh, a first aid kit with a tourniquet, a snow shovel, and a broom.
On the kit header, date the check. Who’s packing this? What vehicle is it for? Do they have an all-year kit? Or do they need to add winter gear to make future rows meaningful?
How many people? That sets how much food & water you’ll need. And where will it be located in the car, in the cabin? Is it in the cargo area? Trunk? So everyone who drives knows where it is without having to dump the entire kit.
For visibility and signaling, mark it as packed when it's ready to use in the vehicle. This list should include a flashlight with extra batteries, a whistle, flares or a reflective triangle, and a radio capable of receiving NOAA weather alerts if you have one. For a passenger car, that means flares or a reflective triangle, according to Ready.gov. It does not set a count of three.
If your state requires more on the roadside warning front, follow it. NHTSA also advises keeping the dome light on and placing bright markers on the windows or antenna if you're stuck. Include a marker or cloth in your kit so you can do this.
Consider weather and traction. Winter traction set: (Ready.gov, NHTSA, FEMA) sand or cat litter, broom, shovel, ice scraper; plus a sleeping bag or blanket and warm clothes.
If you opted for the All-year kit, mark winter-only rows N/A. Mark winter-only rows N/A if this vehicle never sees ice. If you opted for winter extras but they're missing, mark them as Missing. Pack tire chains or another traction device if you realy have them, or if your local area requires them.
This section covers personal and first aid items. All sources above mention a first aid kit. Winter checklist from NHTSA adds a tourniquet inside. Check your dressing expiration dates (Red Cross car page) to confirm they’re good, and check your ointment too.
According to Red Cross, bring at least one gallon of drinking water per person for 24 hours. Ready.gov’s home kit includes one gallon per person per day for several days. Smaller version, the car kit, goes in here. Write down the number of passengers and gallons needed, and pack accordingy.
If you have prescriptions or carry non-prescription pain relievers, bring enough for a few days. Hygiene, infant, glasses, and pet rows is not applicable if the passenger will never ride in this vehicle.
Check fuel, battery and review tools. Jumpers and a charger are the electrical part of the kit. This includes a power bank or backup battery. FEMA includes a battery charger too. The Red Cross list include an Inflator and Tire Repair Kit.
What varies by season, state, and vehicle type
If the vehicle came with a spare tire, jack, and lug wrench, confirm they are there. FEMA and Ready.gov don't instruct keeping fuel in a spare gas can stored in the trunk or passenger compartment. Keep it in the vehicle's tank: a half tank at all times, and a full tank if an evacuation seems likely or in winter so the fuel line is less likely to freeze (Ready.gov Evacuation, Car Safety).
When the gauge meets that practice, mark the tank row Packed. Don't make up a rating, can size, etc., on this one either. Do not invent a rating on this form. A small extinguisher is an extra on Ready.gov's additional list, not a 393.95 rating for this car.
Copy your documents. According to Ready.gov’s list of kits, bring “copies of all important documents such as insurance policies, bank account records and identification” in a portable, waterproof container. FEMA adds to the list: household records include copies of car insurance, vehicle registration and VIN. (No need for a copy of the title.)
Include family emergency contact information, towing, and insurance numbers. Pack and carry numbers; don’t carry around the original title. Bring cash or small bills. Money might be needed if ATMs are down. The financial-preparedness page and kit include the Ready.gov checklist.
Finish with the packer’s signature. Update what’s STILL missing. FEMA says to review the kit every six months and update any expired contents. Record the next review date. Sign and stamp.
If you tagged the header as All-year kit, then your vehicle is N/A for winter extras (scraper, shovel, broom, sand or litter, extra blankets, chains). If you tagged All-year plus winter extras and those items are missing, it's Missing. But if you’re on the year-round car page at Ready.gov, it still includes an ice scraper as one of the automobile extras. So many motorists carry a scraper through the shoulder seasons.
There are several types of warning devices. According to Ready.gov, the minimum for a passenger car is to use flares or a reflective triangle, then follow any state rules for stopped vehicles if they are stricter.
After you finish
The federal rules say that if you drive a commercial vehicle (tractor, truck, bus), the minimum is three two-way triangles conforming with FMVSS 125, or (when permitted by the fire code) fusees (also known as flame devices). Some trucks hauling compressed gas or other hazmat cannot use fusees. Don’t replicate that CMV count here on the passenger-car list.
Yet an electric or hybrid vehicle also requires a power bank, as well as a charger. For EVs and hybrids, NHTSA's winter page advises drivers to maintain the charge of their traction battery and avoid draining it in the cold weather. The jumper-cable procedure remains that from the vehicle owner's manual. That is, the form doesn't create a new jump-start sequence.
Freeze: A car-kit trap for water. Even when bottles are in your trunk, they can still freeze and burst open in extreme cold. Carry enough to drink. Rotate your supply during your six-month check. Stash it where you won't break it.
No one's trunk can hold enough of the several-day household volume recommended by Ready.gov for the whole family. Bring what you can actualy carry, and leave the big kit at home. If you prefer a printable copy, download a filled-in pdf/csv using this tab. Anything entered here stays in this browser. Next person who visits sees an empty form.
Put the kit back where the header says it lives so every driver can find it. Purchase the Missing lines before your next drive. And the six-month date of the sign-off? That's a reminder, not a self-scheduling calendar entry. It won't email you, doesn't call the state, doesn't file anything with anyone, and doesn't substitute for a roadside-assistance membership.
Not a substitute for Ready.gov, the OEM, or a licensed inspection
Here's the form, up top. Here's a downloadable PDF, as well as a preview image, beneath the form.
This template is not legal advice and no substitute for your vehicle's owner manual, FEMA, NHTSA, the American Red Cross, Ready.gov, a licensed inspection, or state fire-extinguisher and roadside-warning rules that may be stricter than this packing template. Anything not found on one of those official sheets that you add to your Notes, such as a gallon number or rule about counting fuel cans, isn't a requirement, don't invent one yourself.