Checking your own tyre depths is a really important part of maintaining a car and could save your life and others. Often a car’s tyres are only checked when it comes to a MOT, but a lot can happen in 12 months and if they were close to the limit last MOT the chances are they will be illegal before the next one. The legal limit for tyre depths in the UK is at least 1.6mm throughout a continuous band in the centre 3/4 of the tread and around the entire circumference. This is because if the tyre has little tread the car will not grip properly so braking distance is increased and the risk of skidding is a lot more likely. Having an accident due to illegal tyres can have devastating consequences and if you are lucky enough not to be injured, you will still find yourself with points on your license. If you have four bold tyres on your car, that’s 12 points on your license which can be an instant ban from driving.
Checking your tyre depths
