Protyre News

If you’re not familiar with the UK’s annual Tyre Safety Month, now’s the time to take note. Organised by the highly respected tyre safety charity, TyreSafe, the campaign takes place throughout the month of October. Its intent is to raise awareness amongst the UK’s millions of motorists of the importance of fitting good tyres, the subsequent need to regularly check them, and the potential hazards of not doing so.

As a leading tyre expert, Protyre – as part of Micheldever Tyre Services – are a committed supporter of TyreSafe. The same can be said of Continental, the highly regarded premium tyre manufacturer. Both of our organisations actively champion the rights of British drivers, particularly when it comes to their safety.

This year, Tyre Safety Month focuses on encouraging drivers to Tune Into Tyre Safety, and get into the habit of regularly checking their tyres. The campaign offers useful insights and advice on the benefits of checking your tyres each month, including the importance of spotting tyre damage as early as possible, having the right tyre pressures, and why having good tread depth is vital for achieving the most grip and shorter stopping distances.
This year’s campaign is supported by a free to download leaflet, a selection of posters, and an informative infographic. Not only that; TyreSafe have also created a catchy tyre safety video that’s inspired by the song, Get into the groove.

Tune Into Tyre Safety takes place following TyreSafe’s Summer Driving campaign, and recent Department for Transports (DoT) data that shows that the majority of tyre-related incidents occur in the month of July, closely followed by June. Previously, many within the industry had presumed that – due to cold and changeable weather, and difficult road conditions – the most accident prone period would be from October through to March. This revelation has surprised many road safety stakeholders. This research underlines the need for UK drivers to inspect their tyres every month.

You cannot – must not – take tyres for granted, especially given the significant role they play in providing driver safety. Tyre inspections is vital. As well as being an opportunity to ensure that pressures are correct, and to inspect for the early tell tale signs of internal and external damage, regular checks also allow motorists to make sure their tyres have good tread depth – essential for achieving optimal grip.

Having good tread depth is vital for maintaining driver safety, since it’s these grooves that are responsible for removing water from between the tyre and the road surface. And while the UK road legal minimum depth is just 1.6 mm, the vast majority of tyre and road safety experts – including both Protyre and Continental – strongly believe that motorists should only drive on tyres that have at least 3 mm of tread depth – almost double the legal minimum.

Why? Because at 1.6 mm the rate of tread wear deterioration is so fast that sufficient grip cannot always be achieved in wet weather conditions, thus endagering drivers’ lives. Continental feel so strongly about this that – unlike many other manufacturers – they include tyre tread wear indicators (TWIs) at both the legal minimum depth of 1.6 mm and their recommeded 3 mm mark. This makes it much, much easier for drivers to know when their tread depths are running low, when making their regular monthly tyre inspections. These TWIs come as standard on all of Continental’s series 5 and above premium tyres.

TWIs at 3 mm are just one of many tyre safety initiatives that Continental undertake across the world, along with their support of TyreSafe, and Tyre Safety Month 2018 in the UK. Another tyre safety partnership with TyreSafe can be found at Continental’s annual Vision Zero Live events, scheduled to take place across the country in the autumn.

Vision Zero is Continental’s global drive to achieve zero fatalities, zero injuries and zero accidents on the world’s roads. It’s a lofty ambition, and one that won’t happen overnight, but – as providers of not only tyres but mechanical and electronic automotive safety systems to the world’s leading vehicle manufacturers – only Continental knows the entire braking process in every detail – from pedal to tyre.

Continental is committed to making driving safer, and is leading many initiatives through TyreSafe on road safety relating to tyres, such as the effects of tread depth on stopping distances, and the need for regular tyre checks and maintenance.