A TAUNTON garage is offering free tyre checks to all vehicle owners in the area, after 79 per cent of motorists locally admitted never checking their tyres.

ETB Autocentres, based in Priory Bridge Road, teamed up with Bridgestone to survey 200 drivers across the town, which revealed that despite tyres being the only contact points between a vehicle and the road – and responsible for 159 deaths or serious injuries from defective tyres related accidents last year – Taunton motorists didn’t deem them to be as important as airbags.

The results coincide with TyreSafe’s National Tyre Safety Month taking place throughout October, which aims to raise awareness about the benefits and importance of regular tyre checks.

Other headline statistics from ETB Taunton and Bridgestone’s research include 56 per cent not knowing that driving on illegal tyres is dangerous, while no motorists surveyed check their tyre treads once a fortnight, which is the recommended period.

The results tie in with a recording of 4,596 total casualties from tyre-related incidents on roads in the past years and there is an estimated 10 million illegal tyres on Britain’s roads each year.

ETB’s retail director Paul Nunn said: “We remain surprised that tyres aren’t seen as the number one safety device on a car in the minds of so many Taunton motorists.

"In fact, they are seen as less important than airbags, which often go off as a result of defective tyres.

"The results show us that there is still a lot of education needed around the topic of tyres.

“We’ll be offering free tyre checks for the foreseeable future.

"We’ll be showing motorists what to look out for and how to check their tyres themselves in the future. For the sake of a few minutes, it’s the least we could do.”

To book a free tyre check appointment with ETB Taunton, call 01823 337383.

For more information about tyre safety and ways to stay safe on roads, visit promotion.bridgestone.co.uk/bridgestone-tyre-care-guide/