70% of motorists still unaware of tyre labelling

Over 70 per cent of motorists are still completely unaware of the impending tyre labelling legislation and the fuel efficiency benefits associated with it. The figure comes from a survey of 3,000 UK motorists conducted by OnePoll and commissioned by tyre Chemical supplier Lanxess. It also shows that almost all UK motorists (99%) vastly underestimate the impact tyres have on their fuel bills, and that over half still prioritise upfront cost when buying their tyres. Less than 20% take fuel consumption and long term costs into consideration.

“The impact of the new labelling system will depend heavily on the number of motorists that know these labels exist and understand how to use them,” explains MD of Lanxess (UK) Ltd Kim O’Connor. “The results of our survey demonstrate that the motoring community is not yet ready and needs an easy and accessible way to understand the impact different tyres can have on their wallets and carbon footprint.”

Vanessa Guyll from The AA added: “For many drivers tyres are just a purchase made out of necessity, with little insight into the costs and performance in use…Tyre labelling will enable them to make much more comprehensive decisions beyond price and size, but so far we’ve seen little interest…”

”There are 42 million tyres sold in the UK every year, but until now the majority of our customers have relied on us for advice about the best ones to suit their needs, including their driving style and budget,” says Tony Bowman, managing director of etyres.“ The simple to understand colourcoded stickers mean motorists don’t have to be a tyre expert to see which tyres give better grip in the wet, offer the most fuel efficiency and make the least noise.“

77% of drivers underestimate fuel savings offered by green tyres

Other interesting figures brought up by the survey include:

• 85% don’t know about more fuel efficient tyres
• Over 60% predict annual savings from switching to greener tyres will be less than £100 (could be closer to £200)
• 77% of motorists underestimate the degree to which fuel consumption is affected by tyre choice

After completing the survey and learning more about greener tyres and labelling:

• 65% of respondents said they would use tyre labels to inform future purchasing decisions
• Only 7% said they would still not consider switching to greener tyres

Lanxess offers mobile app as an answer

To combat this lack of understanding and to help motorists take advantage of the incoming changes, Lanxess has launched a unique free app for smartphones, tablets and web-enabled PCs. It shows motorists exactly how much money, fuel and carbon different tyres can save them based on the car they drive, their annual mileage, and their driving style.

Based on scientific research from the University of Munich, the app asks for information from the motorist about the car they drive (to establish fuel consumption), their annual mileage, the current price of petrol, their driving style and the category of their existing tyres according to the labelling system. It then calculates the exact savings per year and delivers that information clearly, and simply in pounds (financial savings), litres (fuel savings) and Kg (carbon savings) on a single screen. The app also uses this information to calculate the time and miles required to recoup the additional cost of the green tyres, providing yet more information on which to base purchasing decisions.

It demonstrates that changing tyres could save around £200 per year in petrol cost and 350kg of carbon emissions if your annual mileage is 10,000 miles, your car averages 35 mpg and the price of fuel is approximately £1.30 per litre.

Lanxess also unveiled a new website – www.green-tyres.org.uk – which provides quick access to independent information on tyre labelling and the benefits of the latest green tyres that are hitting the market.

The free Lanxess app is available from both the Apple Appstore, and from app.green-tyres.org.uk from 10 September 2012.