Important Part worn Tyre Facts.

By Xpress Garage & Tyre Centre | Thursday, December 15, 2011, 20:39

90% Of Part-Worn Tyres 'Dangerous'

People looking to save a few pounds on the running costs of their car are putting themselves at risk by buying part-worn tyres that do not even meet the minimum legal requirements, a study has revealed.

Trading standards officers from the Council have uncovered evidence showing that 90% of all part-worn tyres fall short of the expected standard and are putting drivers and other road users at risk.

Motorists have been warned that, despite high petrol costs, the recession and inflation running at 3.7%, they shouldn't take such huge risks with their safety and have been urged to reduce their spending in other ways such as looking for cheaper car insurance deals.

Of the part-worn tyres examined nine out of 10 were dangerous.

Among the failures were tyres which had nails embedded, illegal tread depth, exposed cords, inadequate markings and one tyre which was 17 years old.

The investigation comes just weeks after TyreSafe found that more than one in 10 drivers is more likely to buy part-worn tyres compared with 12 months ago.

"The results from the investigation are extremely worrying and confirm our worst fears about part-worn tyres," explains Stuart Jackson, chairman, TyreSafe.

"Although guidelines do exist about the condition of tyres being sold as part worns, they are clearly not being adhered to by all traders. The types of faults found are extremely dangerous and if fitted to a vehicle, could have caused serious accident and injury. This serves as a warning to drivers and we would re-iterate our position that we would always recommend fitting brand new tyres."

As such a safety critical component, many regulations govern the sale of part worn tyres. Among them tyres must be permanently marked as part worn, they must have at least 2mm of tread depth around the whole tyre and the original grooves must be clearly visible in their entirety.