What makes tyres illegal? It would be impossible to list all the reasons of what makes your tyres illegal. But what we have done, is to create a list of the most common reasons of what makes your tyres illegal:

• Insufficient tread (explained below),
• Tyre cord visible,
• Lumps or bulges caused by a failure of the tyres structure,
• Tyre fouling on a part of the vehicle (the tyre making contact with any part of the vehicle).

There are other reasons why a tyre might be deemed illegal, but these are by far, in our experience, the most common reasons of what makes your tyres illegal.

Tread depth

The minimum tread depth on the vehicle, depends on the vehicle itself.

Cars and light commercials must have a minimum of 1.6mm.

Motorcycles, passenger service vehicles (PSVs)/buses and heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) and commercial trailers, must have a minimum of 1mm of tread.

Tyre inspections

Our Forensic Vehicle Examiners can inspect tyres nationwide. We have inspected tyres on behalf of clients who have been prosecuted for having illegal tyres fitted to their vehicles, for clients who have had insurance claims repudiated for illegal tyres and even clients who have been reprimanded or terminated from their employment for using a vehicle with illegal tyres.

What can a forensic vehicle examiner inspect a tyre for?

Our forensic vehicle examiner can inspect a tyre for condition, tread depth, signs of wear (or unusual wear) and to provide an expert opinion on whether the tyre is in a legal or illegal condition. Our forensic vehicle examiner has attended technical training with Michelin UK.

If you need a forensic vehicle examiner, contact us today.

e. enquiry@drivenforensics.co.uk | t. 0113 534 8708