Police back TyreSafe

The East Midlands Operational Support Service (EMOpSS) has lent its support to TyreSafe, the UK’s charity dedicated to raising awareness of the importance of correct tyre maintenance.

EMOpSS’ support for TyreSafe underlines the importance the service places on road safety and the need for motorists to regularly carry out tyre maintenance checks to reduce the risk of an incident on the road.

Chief inspector Phil Vickers from EMOpSS, said, ‘The four EMOpSS police forces are committed to reducing the number of people killed and seriously injured on the roads of the East Midlands.  EMOpSS officers go to collisions where people suffer as a result of poor vehicle maintenance or failing to carry out a simple tyre condition and tread check on a regular basis.

‘We are pleased to be working with TyreSafe to raise awareness of the preventative steps road users can take to stay safe – it’s very frustrating for officers who attend a collision which could have been prevented with just a little effort.’

With officers drawn from Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Nottinghamshire, EMOpSS conducts operations and day-to-day business across county borders, serving a population of 2.9 million people across 5,255 square miles. In addition to its role in traffic collision investigation and roads policing, EMOpSS also provides armed policing response, firearms training and specialist search skills and dog support.

Stuart Jackson, chairman, TyreSafe, said, ‘Over the past ten years, TyreSafe has helped reduce the number of tyre-related incidents on Britain’s roads by 31% yet more than 1,100 people are still killed or injured as a result of accidents caused by defective or illegal tyres every year.’

Tyres cause more accidents resulting in casualties than any other vehicle defect yet TyreSafe research highlights a poor attitude to tyre safety among Britain’s motorists. One in five drivers admitted to never having checked their tyres while over a quarter of all tyres nationally are already illegal when owners finally replace them.