Tyres

(asked on 12th October 2017) - View Source

Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the extent of the practice undertaken by some bus, HGV and other large vehicle fleet operators to substitute tyres that are not compliant with legal requirements with compliant tyres for the purpose of inspections; and what proposals they have to address that practice.


Answered by
Lord Callanan Portrait
Lord Callanan
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
This question was answered on 26th October 2017

To ensure that vehicles on the roads are safe, legal and roadworthy, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) carries out two types of vehicle inspections to identify if the vehicle meets the legal requirements for mechanical condition, which includes an assessment of the condition of the tyres:

(1) Annual roadworthiness inspections (MOTs), which are pre-arranged.

The statistics for 2015/16 show that the MOT pass rates for large vehicles are high:

Heavy Goods Vehicles - 89%

Buses, Public Service Vehicles & Coaches - 92%

Trailers - 91%

(2) Nationwide intelligence-led targeted inspections and daily roadside

spot checks, which are conducted on vehicles where the operator and

driver are unaware that the vehicle is to be inspected.

In 2015/16, DVSA conducted the following number of Great Britain roadside mechanical checks, and the number of vehicles found to have 1 or more defects relating to tyres were low:

Vehicle type:

Number of roadside checks conducted in 2015/16:

% of vehicles found to have 1 or more defects relating to tyres

Heavy Goods Vehicles

29,030

4%

Buses, Public Service Vehicles & Coaches

8,485

2.1%

Trailers

10,461

6.2%

There is a lack of statistical evidence to date to support the claim that some bus, HGV and other large vehicle fleet operators are substituting tyres that are not compliant with legal requirements, with compliant tyres for the purpose of inspections. However, all inspection outcomes and vehicle defects are recorded and assessed by DVSA on an individual operator basis. All non-compliant operators are then targeted for further enforcement action either at the roadside or by carrying out an inspection at the operator’s premises, which can be an unannounced visit.

The Department first issued guidance in 2013, which was subsequently updated, most recently in October 2016, recommending tyres over 10 years old should not be fitted to front steering axles, but only at the rear on twin wheels. A year after the guidance was published, a further survey of older Public Service Vehicles (PSV) was carried out by DVSA. This survey indicated a reduction in the average age of tyres fitted in the PSV fleet and demonstrated widespread compliance with the advice.

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