The UK faces a tyre safety crisis, with two in five (40%) of vehicles on the road today running on tyres that are either outright illegal or dangerously close to the limit.
That’s the stark warning from the National Tyre Distributors Association (NTDA) as it publishes its TyreCheck 2025 report – the largest study of its kind ever undertaken in the UK.
The investigation of more than 58,000 vehicles across 141 locations found that 8% were fitted with illegal tyres below the 1.6mm legal minimum. A further 32% were on “barely legal” tyres – technically compliant but offering severely reduced grip and safety margins, especially in wet conditions. The NTDA warns this trend shows motorists are delaying replacement until the last possible moment, putting themselves and others at serious risk.
• Halesowen in the West Midlands named UK’s most dangerous hotspot with 71% of cars on illegal tyres, described as a “genuine public safety emergency”
