Are the Tyres on Your School Minibus Legal?
Are you aware of the penalties for illegal tyres?
If you have a school minibus, do you know the regulations regarding changing tyres? Recently, we were contacted by a client who was alarmed to learn that tyres on minibuses must be replaced if they are ten years old. Their vehicle had passed its MOT and their garage had not picked up on this vital stipulation.
What should you be doing to ensure that your tyres are legal?
Tyre age restrictions for goods vehicles, buses, coaches and minibuses
It is illegal for the front (steering) axle or axles of:
- goods vehicles with a gross mass of more than 3.5 tonnes
- buses
- coaches
- minibuses and also to the rear axle, or axles, unless equipped with twin wheels
to use tyres aged more than 10 years.
To prove the age of a tyre it is further required that the manufacture date, printed on the tyre, remain legible on all tyres.
Re-treaded tyres are subject to the same requirement as first-life tyres. The date of re-treading, instead of the date of first manufacture, will be used to determine the tyre age.
The only exemptions are vehicles:
- currently excluded from tyre roadworthiness regulations (as stated in regulation 27(4)(a) of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 defined as being of historical interest, providing they are not used for commercial purpose.
The Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) (Amendment) Regulations 2020, introduced new requirements that ban the use of tyres aged more than 10-years on certain vehicles.
Identifying the date of tyre manufacture
Tyres sold in GB are required to have their date of manufacture marked on the sidewall. This date is shown as a 4-digit number; the first 2 digits indicate the week number in which the tyre was manufactured and the last two digits the year. In the example given the tyre was manufactured in week 21 of 2020.
Using older tyres on other axles
It is lawful, but not recommended, to use tyres aged more than 10 years on other axles.
Research has found structural deterioration can occur in older tyres which cannot be identified through visual inspection. Owners are recommended to record and monitor the age of the tyres on their vehicle as per the tyre management section in the ‘Guide to Maintaining Roadworthiness’.
It is the vehicle owner or operator’s responsibility to make sure their tyres do not present a road safety risk.
Roadworthiness inspections
The presence of a tyre aged more than 10 years in a position as defined, is classed as a dangerous defect. This will lead to the refusal of a roadworthiness certificate at an annual inspection.
If this defect is identified elsewhere, for example at the roadside, it will attract a prohibition.
Penalties
It will be an offence to:
- use;
- cause; and
- permit to be used
a tyre on a vehicle as defined.
Penalties for misuse are:
- fixed penalty notices;
- fines;
- driving licence penalty points; and
- disqualification from driving.
The maximum fine is Level 5, a potentially unlimited amount in England and Wales, but capped at £5,000 in Scotland.