Don’t neglect your spare tyre

Over 80% of UK motorists admitted in a survey to having their car cleaned regularly, but only 30% of owners have checked their spare tyre/wheel in the last three months, almost 20% admitting to never having checked the spare at all. One good point from the survey, however, is that almost half of UK drivers seem to have taken heed of safety advice and checked the tread depth of their tyres within the last month.

The consumer survey, undertaken by fast.MAP on behalf of mytyres.co.uk, one of the UK’s leading online tyre retailers, underlines the fact that the spare tyre is the most neglected component on a car and could put motorists in both an inconvenient and potentially dangerous situation following a puncture on one of the four running wheels. A spokesman for mytyres.co.uk said, “Whilst it is not illegal to have a spare below the legal 1.6mm tread depth, it does become illegal the moment it is fitted to the car. A regular check of the spare takes but a few minutes and could save a lot of problems should motorists suffer a puncture”.

mytyres.co.uk recommends that the spare is checked once a month for the correct pressure and general condition. If the spare is difficult to access there are products on the market which connect to the valve and can be attached to the side of the boot which provides a simple visual indication of the tyre pressure.