More than one in four cars are driving on death-trap tyres, and the new government will need to take action to prevent carnage on the roads. That is the blunt message from Graham Stapleton, Halfords’ chief executive, following the UK’s largest ever tyre census.
Earlier this month Halfords technicians checked over 6,000 tyres on a random selection of 1,527 vehicles parked in long term car parks at Gatwick, Edinburgh, and Manchester airports, in partnership with car park operator NCP.
Over 25 per cent of vehicles had at least one tyre that was damaged, cracked, bulging, or so worn it needed immediate replacement.
Of the almost 30,000 deaths and serious injuries recorded on Britain’s roads each year, Halfords estimates dangerous tyres are now a contributory factor in 7,475 – 50 times greater than the official statistics, and four times greater than the number of deaths and serious injuries attributed to drink driving.
“This is the deadly legacy of the cost-of-living crisis,” said Graham Stapleton. “The tyre replacement cycle is a long way behind where it was prior to the pandemic as people continue to struggle with household bills. People are making tough choices about how they spend their money and unfortunately, road safety is taking a back seat right now.
“Police forces are very stretched, and officers often don’t have the tools they need to identify tyre defects when they attend incidents,” said Graham Stapleton. “As a result, there are many accidents caused by dangerous tyres which don’t get captured in the official statistics.”
The most recent official figures show that tyre defects were responsible for 147 deaths and serious injuries on Britain’s roads, about the same as mobile phone distraction.
To improve data collection and drive enforcement, Halfords has pledged to get a tyre tread depth gauge into every police patrol car in the country. It has already donated gauges Devon & Cornwall and Lancashire constabularies, Police Scotland plus police forces participating in a multi-agency enforcement campaign currently underway on the M6, Britain’s longest motorway.
Halfords is doing all it can to make staying safe on the road affordable. The retailer has broadened the range of tyres it offers to suit all budgets and it has also introduced a buy now, pay later option. Free tyre safety checks are available at any of Halfords 639 garages.
“We want to see the next government put a big emphasis on road safety,” said Graham Stapleton. “That could mean an awareness campaign, but we also want to see major action on enforcement.
“For example, we have a farcical situation right now whereby a vehicle can come into a garage, be found to have illegal tyres or brakes, and yet there is nothing to stop it from being driven away.
“One solution would be for all garages to be mandated to upload registration numbers of offending vehicles to the Automatic Number Plate Recognition system used by police forces.”
Source: Tyretradenews
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