Easter is approaching and with it the sobering prospect that many of the nation’s two million caravans will venture back onto the road. The impending start of the caravanning season has prompted both TyreSafe and the Protyre retail chain to issue safety reminders to caravan owners. The essence of both reminders is to check for safety issues that may have developed during the vehicle’s months of inactivity.
With giant OTR tyres containing enough cooped up energy to project a person two kilometres, the particular importance of tyre safety on mine sites is perhaps underestimated. One way of redressing this balance, raising awareness of the pressure and condition of a tyre and at the same time saving emissions, fuel and therefore money, is to employ tyre pressure monitoring systems (TPMS) to keep an eye on these large and expensive components.
Tyre retailers and bike dealerships are being urged to take part in TyreSafe’s ‘PACT’ campaign and help bikers maximising their road safety. PACT stands for – Performance, Air, Condition and Tread. The idea is that if riders make a PACT with their bike and ensure they check their tyres for air pressure, overall condition and tread depth then they will be rewarded with better performance including improved handling, grip and fuel economy.
"Treasury officials are trying to spin their way out of the current debate over fuel duty by suggesting that they are giving £4 billion back to the motorist by deferring previous duty increases," said Brian Madderson, RMI Petrol Chairman.
On the 24 February The Financial Times stated that 'faced with a virulent media campaign and public protests at Westminster this month in favour of fuel duty cuts, the chancellor’s aides say he has provided more than £4bn to help motorists and cannot afford anymore.'
With fuel prices reaching record levels, TyreSafe has reminded motorists about the fuel efficiency benefits of correct tyre pressure as well as providing maximum safety and prolonging tyre life.
While beleaguered UK motorists are now paying as much as 144.67p per litre for diesel on average, TyreSafe points out that apart from improved safety and the reduced risk of experiencing a dangerous blowout, correctly inflated tyres provide lower running costs.
Two important topics – Part-worn tyres and tyre labelling – will head the agenda at TyreSafe's next industry communications briefing on 3 May. The safety organisation invites anyone with an interest in tyre and road safety to attend this free event, which will be held at the Ardencote Manor hotel in Warwickshire. The briefing will provide attendees with an overview of some important changes facing the industry. It will also highlight TyreSafe’s forthcoming campaigns so that companies and organisations can integrate them within their own activities.
There was a positive start to the year for TyreSafe with the announcement of a new member – Adrian Flux Insurance Services is one of the UK’s leading motor insurance firms and the first TyreSafe member from the insurance sector.
Pirelli has published a video highlighting the safety benefits of fitting winter tyres to passenger cars. The short film, created in conjunction with TyreSafe, features Pirelli’s Winter Sottozero Serie II fitted to a Jaguar XF driven at slow speeds on an ice rink. The video displays the greater grip and traction offered when setting off, in addition to the reduced stopping distance; driven at 15mph, the Jaguar fitted with the winter tyres stops three metres before that running on summer tyres.
It’s now half a decade since TyreSafe first set out to improve safety on UK roads. The 2006-established organisation is celebrating its fifth anniversary, and upon reaching this milestone can reflect with pride that, during the years it has contributed to public awareness on tyre safety, the number of motorists (as reported by DfT figures) killed or seriously injured in tyre related accidents has dropped 38 per cent.
Alan Baldwin, wholesale director at Micheldever Tyre Services, has praised Goodyear Dunlop UK’s recent part worn information initiative “in the strongest possible way.” Speaking to Tyres & Accessories, Baldwin highlighted what he called “their excellent initiative in exposing the dangers of part worn tyres to the consumer”.
He continued: “Amongst all the tyre manufacturers, Goodyear has clearly grasped the horrendous dangers of what the almost totally un-policed and dangerous part worn market means to the consumers safety and pockets…Goodyear’s excellent flyer (“The Ugly Truth about Part Worns) is the best information a consumer could be given and should be applauded by the entire industry.”
It will be hard to miss the Maxxis Babes in 2012 because the girls will be touring the UK in their very own BabeMobile – a VW camper van featuring a distinct livery purpose-designed for them by one of their legion of fans. The Babes will be using the orange and black BabeMobile to travel to rounds of the Maxxis British Drift Championship and the ACU Maxxis British Motocross Championship and to attend the various performance car shows and exhibitions that tyre manufacturer Maxxis will be supporting next summer.
The autumn of 2011 was one of the warmest we’ve had in a while, but now the nip of winter has arrived and air temperatures are dropping. More importantly for motorists, the seven degrees Celsius threshold – the level at which the tread compound in summer tyres begins to harden – has been crossed. In light of this, TyreSafe has again shared it winter tyre message with Britain’s drivers.
The BBC’s primetime entertainment programme The One Show has clarified the advice it originally gave in a studio presentation following a report highlighting the dangers of driving on illegal tyres. The original report, which featured TyreSafe and was aired during October’s tyre safety month, prominently feature key safety messages.
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A new online tyre retailer in the UK has reported that sales and enquiries about winter tyres have exceeded its expectations, with “sales that are comparable to Denmark”. Goodgrip.co.uk launched in the UK market in October and is a trading name of Bythjul Norden AB, which has a presence in the Nordic markets dating back to 2001 selling over half a million tyres, and recently launching in Germany.
Ford of Britain has joined TyreSafe as part of its UK Corporate Social Responsibility programme. Through its membership, Ford of Britain will support TyreSafe’s campaigns, helping to educate drivers of both car and commercial vehicles about the importance of proper, regular tyre maintenance. It will also provide the group with other valuable insight to help improve road safety.
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