Study Suggests Many Second Hand Tyres Unfit for Re-Sale

According to the results of a regional study a high proportion of the partially worn second hand tyres sold in the UK each year fail to meet current safety standards, and if this study is representative of the nationwide situation as many as 600,000 of these unsafe tyres may be on sale throughout the UK each year.

A recent survey of suppliers conducted by the Lincolnshire County Council’s Trading Standards Service, with support from TyreSafe, revealed that some 30 per cent of the inspected part worn tyres were found to possess serious defects that could pose a safety risk when fitted to a vehicle. Much of the damage found by the Trading Standards Service was of a type not detectable by visual inspection and included unsafe repairs, damage to the tyre’s bead area that reduced its ability to maintain pressure whilst on the rim, and tyres possessing structural damaged caused through being run in when deflated. The thoroughness of the examination each tyre receives before being sold has also been called into question, as have been the qualifications and ability of the examiners whose job it is to identify faults.

TyreSafe suggests that the Lincolnshire experience may hold true for the rest of the UK, and each year thousands of unaware motorists are being placed at risk. The organisation believes that as many as 2 million partially worn tyres are sold in the UK every year. The Lincolnshire County Council’s Francis Gibson said, “It is clear from the findings of this exercise that serious problems exist that compromise the safety of part worn tyres sold to the general public. If the problems found in Lincolnshire are typical of the standard of part worn tyres being sold throughout the UK, then there is justifiable cause for concern.”

TyreSafe wants the government to implement and enforce stricture regulations covering the sale of part worn tyres. Current legislation states that tyres must have a minimum tread of 2mm and be thoroughly examined prior to sale. The organisation is also continuing its campaign of educating the public on the dubious value of second hand tyres, which often cost only a fraction less than a new tyre but can have less than half the remaining tread life.