In three years all new tyres on sale in Europe will be classified and labelled for fuel efficiency, wet grip and noise performance. Yesterday (Thursday 1 October) European Parliament Industry Committee and Council negotiators reached a political agreement on a labelling system similar to that used for household appliances. However, lobby group Transport & Environment said the revised text would effectively turn the scheme into a voluntary programme, with “no clear rules on how or where the labels should be displayed.”

Like the European energy label we have come to expect on our new fridges and washing machines, the tyre label will use classes ranging from best-performance (green “A” class) to worst (red “G” class). Besides indicating how much the tyre affects the car's fuel efficiency, it will also give information about its performance in wet conditions and its external rolling noise in decibels.

The revised text for what is known as regulation 316 addresses earlier concerns from inside the tyre trade about the practical application of tyre labelling. MEPs acknowledged that, unlike household appliances, tyres are not always on display in shops. As a result they “insisted” that retailers be “obliged to show the label to the buyer before the sale and also on, or with, bills.”