Fleets are racking up additional running costs though drivers running vehicles with tyres that are underinflated. According to ATS Euromaster, 12 per cent of the vans and cars it sees under its fleet Mastercare programme feature tyres that are below pressure. The results, says the national tyre and maintenance provider, will be to inflate running costs by between 3-10 per cent depending on the degree of under-inflation.
TyreSafe has calculated that UK motorists waste more than £600 million worth of fuel due to tyre underinflation. Using data from Michelin’s Fill Up With Air survey showing that 57 per cent of vehicles are driven on underinflated tyres, as well as information sourced from the Department for Transport and the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, TyreSafe is tying the economic argument for ensuring tyres are correctly inflated alongside safety concerns for this year’s Tyre Safety Month. Referring both to the general awareness of tyres as a vital safety component and rhetorically to question why drivers would not check their tyres at least once a month, his year’s October campaign asks Britain’s motorists directly: “What’s Stopping You?”
TyreSafe has warned that Britain’s motorists are paying over £600 million a year in unnecessary fuel bills by driving with underinflated tyres.
As part of its activities to support Tyre Safety Month in October, ATS Euromaster tested the tyre pressures of more than 1,000 cars at 28 of its centres across the UK. What it found was that 55 per cent of those vehicles – 561 cars – had at least one underinflated tyre. This high figure closely tallies with the 57 per cent recorded by industry association TyreSafe as part of its ‘Bad Air Day’ campaign.
According to TyreSafe, drivers are increasing their motoring costs as well as the risk of being involved in an incident by ignoring tyre maintenance. The organiser of Tyre Safety Month is reminding motorists that regular tyre checks are a ‘win-win’ as they will help road users stay safe and avoid unnecessary bills. To help them, TyreSafe has drawn together a list of tips as a reference guide.
TyreSafe has started the 2017 Tyre Safety Month with a question: Are you having a Good or Bad Air Day? The organisation is taking on the rampant underinflation of tyres in the UK; its figures show that more than half the tyres on Britain’s cars and vans are being driven at lower pressure than required.
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