The survey commissioned by TyreSafe and young driver insurer ingenie also showed that two out of three young drivers had not checked their tread within the last month, the maximum period recommended between checks. Meanwhile, a quarter confessed they had never checked their tyre pressures, with three out of five admitting they had not checked them in the last month.

Almost half of the drivers surveyed admitted they’d never been shown how to check the condition of their tyres. More than half of those questioned also didn’t know that it was the driver’s responsibility to ensure that the car’s tyres are safe and legal and a massive 85 percent were unaware that the maximum fine for driving on an illegal tyre was £2,500; and more than a third were unaware that drivers could receive three penalty points for driving on an illegal tyre. With new drivers getting their licence revoked if they receive six points in two years – the equivalent of driving on two illegal tyres – young drivers need to be made aware there are serious consequences of driving on illegal tyres.

‘Regular basic tyre maintenance is a critical element of being a safe and responsible driver, yet these latest findings would suggest that this message is being lost on young drivers today,’ commented Stuart Jackson, chairman, TyreSafe. ‘We saw an increase last year in the number of tyre related road casualties and if we fail to take immediate action in educating young drivers about the need to look after their tyres properly, sadly we can only expect to see this figure rise further.’

To help young drivers understand the consequences of poor tyre care and how they should be checked, TyreSafe and ingenie have released a video starring BBC Outnumbered actor and ingenie video blogger Tyger Drew-Honey, who has recently passed his driving test.

For more information about tyre safety or to view the video, visit www.tyresafe.org/tyre-safety/young-drivers.

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