Tread carefully to avoid a slip up on the roads this summer

Seventeen million motorists are taking a 'tread-bare' approach to vehicle maintenance, according to the RAC Foundation, who are emphasising the dangers of tired tread and wrongly inflated tyres as part of an eight-week tyre safety campaign supported by the National Tyre Distributors Association (NTDA).

45% of motorists do not know the minimum legal tread depth for tyres, and this figure rises to 60% for women. Motorists living in East Anglia, the North East, Midlands and Wales are more likely than other UK motorists to know the minimum legal tread depth for tyres. People living in Northern Ireland, the North West, South East and Scotland are most at risk from misunderstanding the importance of tired tread.

Illegal, defective or under-inflated tyres contributed to 2% of all fatal accidents in 2006 which should act as a warning to the seventeen million drivers who do not check their tyres regularly. Skid resistance surfaces on UK roads vary according to carriageway finish and weather, making it wise for drivers to change their tyres when the tread reaches the 3mm level, rather than the legal minimum of 1.6mm, as stopping distances are improved by 20%.

Good tyres are needed for safe driving as they affect the steering, braking and acceleration of vehicles. It is against the law to have:

* Car tyres with tread worn to below 1.6mm;
* A mix of radial and cross-ply tyres;
* Over or under-inflated tyres;
* Tyres with cuts, lumps, bulges or tears;
* The wrong sort of tyre fitted to a vehicle or trailer.

The RAC Foundation is urging petrol retailers to continue to provide free, accurate and well-maintained tyre pressure gauges to reduce the number of drivers on the road with incorrectly inflated tyres. Motorists who are unsure of how to check their tyre condition can either take advantage of the free safety check available at NTDA retailers until 30th September or follow the following advice:

1. How to check tread depth:

Most tyres have tread wear indicators, usually six or more small ribs across the bottom of the main tread grooves. When the tread surface is level with these ribs, the tyre needs to be replaced.

2. How to check tyre pressure:

Look in your handbook or consult your garage or tyre dealer for the recommended pressures for your vehicle. You should check the pressure at least every two weeks, and only when the tyres are cool.

Elizabeth Dainton, Research Development Manager for the RAC Foundation said: 'Tyre safety is not an optional extra. Tyres are the only contact a car has with the road surface. How well the road and tyre grip each other maybe the difference between life and death in an emergency, making it vitally important for motorists to check their tyres regularly.'

Richard Edy, director of the National Tyre Distributors Association, said 'Regrettably, tyre maintenance is not as high a priority as it should be for millions of drivers. However, there are 2,700 NTDA member centres in the UK that are willing, ready and expertly qualified to check tyres and pass on sound safety advice, completely free of charge.

'Any driver who is unsure about tyre tread wear, inflation pressure or the age of tyres fitted to a vehicle should call in for a free check at the earliest opportunity.'