ATS Survey Finds 10% of Fleet Cars Have Tread Below 1.6mm
Almost one in ten cars examined by ATS Euromaster as part of a recent unscheduled tyre safety inspection were found to have at least one tyre which was at or below the legal limit of 1.6 millimetres or another similarly major defect. The surprise car park inspection saw technicians record the tyre tread depth and overall condition of each tyre on 147 cars at a popular conference venue in Birmingham.
Following the inspections, technicians left advice cards warning drivers about their tyre condition. Fourteen vehicles (9.5 per cent) were in red condition, according to the company’s traffic light scale, with one or more tyres at a tread depth at or below the legal limit of 1.6mm, or with a serious defect requiring immediate attention. A further 15 vehicles (10.2 per cent) received ‘amber’ warnings – typically tyres where the tread depth is getting low (2mm or below) or with defects requiring attention. The remaining 118 cars (80.3 per cent) had tyre tread depths above 2mm on all tyres, and no obvious defects.