Your cars tyres are the only contact with the surface you drive on, so if they are not safe you are increasing your risk of being involved in a car accident.

Motorists who fail to check that their vehicles have safe tyres face a fine up to £2,500 and three penalty points on their license for each illegal tyre if they are not in a safe condition.

To help promote the importance of safe tyres, TyreSafe are running Tyre Safety Month during October, to help highlight the increased chances of being involved in a road accident if you drive a vehicle with unsafe tyres.

TyreSafe are promoting the use of 20p coins to check tyres have sufficient tread.

By placing a 20p coin in the tread of a tyre, if the outer band around the coin is visible they are advising you get the tyre checked by a qualified tyre specialist.

The law currently states that vehicles tyres must have at least 1.6mm of tread across the middle three quarters of each tyre all the way around its circumference.

Tyres that fail to meet this requirement put the vehicle and its occupants, along with other road users at increased danger of a road accident, as stopping distances will be increased, the risk of aquaplaning increases and cornering ability is less effective.