Parents urged to put tyre safety at the top of the class

Parents urged to put tyre safety at the top of the class

Road safety organisation TyreSafe is advising parents of the importance of checking their car tyres are safe and legal in the run up to the new school year.

The non-profit road safety organisation issue the advice following research carried out by one of its members, which found that more than 30 per cent of cars dropping off children at one Shropshire primary school were fitted with illegal tyres.

Tyre Safe Chairman Stuart Jackson said: "The start of the new academic year means that we will be experiencing many more cars on the roads, particularly at peak times of the day,

"Many of these cars may be used less frequently so it's essential that their tyres are checked to ensure that they are roadworthy and legal so that the precious load is transported in a safe manner."

TyreSafe is encouraging parents to check three key areas of their tyres.

Firstly, pressures should be checked to ensure that they are inflated to the vehicle manufacturer's recommended settings, which can be found in the vehicle handbook, inside the fuel filler cap or on a plate on the driver's doorsill.

Secondly, tread depths should be examined to ensure they exceed the UK's minimum legal tread depth of 1.6mm across the central three quarters of the tyre, around its entire circumference  why not try the 20p test  make sure your car is on level ground, place a 20-pence-piece in the grooves of the tread, if you can see the outer edge of the 20p your tyres may be illegal.

Finally, the general condition of the tyre should be inspected to ensure they are free from lumps, cuts and bulges. Also any foreign objects embedded in the tread should also be removed.

"Making these vital safety checks only takes a couple of moments but could make the world of difference to the safety of you and your children. Of course, this isn't just a one time job; it's something that we all should be doing on an ongoing basis at least once a month," concludes Jackson.

If you are unsure of how to check your tyres you can visit your local Bristol Street Motors dealership.

by: Danielle Bagnall