Should winter tyres be mandatory in the UK ?

Should winter tyres be mandatory ?

  • Yes

    Votes: 41 39.8%
  • No

    Votes: 62 60.2%

  • Total voters
    103
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Should the fitting of winter tyres to cars be mandatory in the UK in certain conditions ?
 
Should the fitting of winter tyres to cars be mandatory in the UK in certain conditions ?

I've put down a no vote on this.

Too difficult to deal with in terms of legislation because our winters tend to be mild with a few major cold snaps scattered across the years.

However.

I do think there is currently a justification for an interim position - where drivers are required to carry chains/socks and a shovel if venturing out during severe weather - and be capable of using them. Points and fixed penalty as a stick to ensure people comply.
 
Too many lazy/illegal drivers in this country who are already driving illegal. Just another unenforceable law.......
 
I think they should be with an annual inspection to make sure they are fitted to the car with big fines and points to those found without. The country would have been kept moving had everyone had winter tyres on. I know this for a fact!

Would get rid of a lot of the heaps off the road! i dispair at how little time and money people spend on tyres for their car. Really annoys me.
 
No, in my opinion. However I have not sampled them, and only have my budget chinese wide rears and goodyear low rolling resistance tyres (read hard compound), a pretty duff set up, and yet I have managed to nip about here fine, just a lot slower and with more time

A better driving test and a high standard of driving with compulsary courses in skidpan and adverse handling should be.

Without trying to come accross smug, I have not personally experienced difficulty in driving my car in the adverse weather, but many others have. Care, lots of attention and some thought I dare say are a better resource. Avoiding sudden braking, driving a lot slower, not applying too much power to the wheels. I got down great western road ok, and some git in a landrover freelander was stuck.

However, I did have one back end moment where a combination of opposite lock from me, and ESP saved it. I dare say with winter tyres that might not have happened but I was going so slowly it was not hard to control.

The only winter driving problem is that my cars wheel bearing has gone, and I was stuck on the A82 westbound.

The key is not the tyres, but the care of the end user. The driver.
 
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You need to add "maybe" to the poll. Over the last two years South has had snow but it tends to be short lived so a mandatory fitment of snow tyres is not as critical to those say in Norway.

Changing the minimum tread depth to 3mm would save more lives overall.
 
Now I put down a yes for this, in an idea situation we would have the extra set for winter driving, not only for the snow but also for the amount of rain we have got in the last couple of years.

But would also have to agree with Dryce, there is no way you could make it mandatory, if some people can't even remember to fill their windscreen washer tanks up, how you going to get them to change wheels or tyres twice a year?

Ah well :dk:
 
The German option seems to be rather more sensible. Cause a traffic hold up or accident because your car has inappropriate tyres you get points and a fine. That seems rather fairer to those who don't want or need to drive in adverse weather conditions.
 
I voted yes, even if it is 4 season tyres as the minimum. I think people need to be doing something, chains,socks,even a spade as said above. I understand that there are going to be times when not everyone can drive to work. If your work is only a few miles away though there is no reason not to walk instead.
 
312sprinter is right on the money as far as I'm concerned. Venture out with inappropriate equipment for the conditions and cause problems for other people then its your lookout and you risk the fine. If its cold and dry and you're on standard tyres then its not really a big issue. If there's a few inches of snow and you go out not equipped with chains/sock/winter tyres (delete as appropriate) then you are being foolish.

Having said that, I'm lucky, if it starts snowing hard I nip to work before it gets too bad and come back home in the vehicle shown in my avatar :p
 
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No, in my opinion. However I have not sampled them, and only have my budget chinese wide rears and goodyear low rolling resistance tyres (read hard compound), a pretty duff set up, and yet I have managed to nip about here fine, just a lot slower and with more time

A better driving test and a high standard of driving with compulsary courses in skidpan and adverse handling should be.

Without trying to come accross smug, I have not personally experienced difficulty in driving my car in the adverse weather, but many others have. Care, lots of attention and some thought I dare say are a better resource. Avoiding sudden braking, driving a lot slower, not applying too much power to the wheels. I got down great western road ok, and some git in a landrover freelander was stuck.

However, I did have one back end moment where a combination of opposite lock from me, and ESP saved it. I dare say with winter tyres that might not have happened but I was going so slowly it was not hard to control.

The only winter driving problem is that my cars wheel bearing has gone, and I was stuck on the A82 westbound.

The key is not the tyres, but the care of the end user. The driver.
I think that careful & proper driving is important and can help for sure. But to be honest i am not too bad a driver and the difference between summer tyres and winter tyres is not small but huge. My tyres are quite wide and that might have made it worse with summer tyres (265-35-18 & 245-40-18). However I could not get my car out of my estate driven in anyway on summer tyres. The winter tyres breeze through since the change.
 
I voted No, for a combination of Dryce's (#2) and kwakdonut's (#3) reasons.

There are thousands of chavmobiles with illegal tyres already. The current laws have done nothing to make their drivers comply. I daresay if the members of these hallowed forums carefully inspected their tyres one or two might get a surprise as well.

Rather than force winter/all season tyres on passenger cars, I think the Government would be better advised to turn their attention to HGVs, especially articulated vehicles.

Make the fitting of winter/all season tyres or the carrying and use of chains compulsory between November and March, and restrict them to Lane 1 on dual carriageways/motorways when there is falling or lying snow.

I'd wager at the front of every blocked main road there's an HGV.
 
I think that careful & proper driving is important and can help for sure. But to be honest i am not too bad a driver and the difference between summer tyres and winter tyres is not small but huge. My tyres are quite wide and that might have made it worse with summer tyres (265-35-18 & 245-40-18). However I could not get my car out of my estate driven in anyway on summer tyres. The winter tyres breeze through since the change.

I have not sampled them so my comments should not carry to much weight on this poll. So far I have been ok, but everyone who gets them, and the press reviews conclusively points in their favour.
 
No, because winter conditions in most of the UK just don't warrant them.
 
No, because winter conditions in most of the UK just don't warrant them.

Not down in Surrey for sure, but there are parts that do.

However, we cannot just draw up legistlation for the whole of the UK.

People need to use their brains for once in their lives and make decisions independently that match their needs.
 
However, we cannot just draw up legistlation for the whole of the UK.

We could if it was based on Local Council guidelines.

These guidelines would require to be based on accurate weather forecasting and temperature monitoring.

I'm also in favour of penalties for drivers who cause mayhem.

I was held up the other night by a driver of a Vauxhall Insignia that was almost brand-new (so no excuses about tyres) who decided that the best way up a hill was a gazillion RPM on his low profile tyres.

Parked up, went to his moonwalking car and told him I would push and to just let it catch on tickover then tickle the throttle and change into 2nd and let the engine pull him up the hill.

Went to the back, applied pressure and 'WZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ' went the front tyres and the smell of rubber nearly made me puke.

Asked him if he was deaf and wished him well on his walk home.

Spun the Merc round and went another route.
 
I would have thought transport was a devolved power in Scotland?

I am firmly in favour, I doubt it will happen as Philip Hammond's recent comments show.
 
Many drivers - like me - don't actually drive on ice and snow. I just stay at home...

So forcing us to change tyres twice a year for no obvious reason - and find place to store them (living in a flat in central London) - is just a pointless nightmare.

I totally agree that you should use Winter tyres if you drive on ice and snow - I just don't think it should be mandatory. In the same way it would be very sensible to pack a warm blanket in the boot for any eventuality - but it should be down to motorists to be responsible and use the right tyres for the driving environment, not an all-encompassing legal requirement.

On a more general note, in a nanny-state everything is done though laws - the bigger risk is that you relieve the individual from responsibility, based on the rational that if something is not outright illegal then it must be OK - not so, common sense should be allowed to prevail.
 
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Many drivers - like me - don't actually drive on ice and snow. I just stay at home...

Then you have no need to fit winter tyres :dk:
 
I think the recent law change in Germany applies to anyone driving in adverse conditions rather than a blanket 'change your tyres now' law.

If you are seen sliding around, block the road or have an accident because you don't have suitable tyres for the conditions then expect to pay a penalty.

If you choose to wait until the roads thaw before driving then my understanding is that you are OK. That said, it still means that many will have to fit winter tyres in case they get caught in bad weather and/or because in some areas temperatures may not rise above zero for weeks on end. (This could be said in some areas of the UK I might add)

It seems a sensible approach and allows for those who would rather not venture out in the snow in their car yet ensures that those that do don't block the roads and cause chaos.
 

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