Jul
11
When did you last check your rubber and your nuts? This includes you too Ladies
Filed Under Courier World, Current affairs
This is the seventh in a series of blogs by Fleet Risk Consultants’s Nigel Grainger.
The black bits in each corner of your vehicle are the most neglected items of each vehicle. These are your point of contact with the road and you really should treat them with respect.
You should examine them at least once every month and you need to get down on your hands and knees to do it properly. You need to run your hands around the tread area and the back off the wheel checking for cuts and other damage. You then need to check the tyre pressure and the tread depth.
The legal minimum for tread depth for cars and vans is currently 1.6mm of tread across the central three quarters of the tyre. Tyres with bald patches, bulges or cuts over 25mm long exposing the cords are also illegal and unsafe.
A tyre with reduced pressure will affect the tyre life, emission, fuel consumption and more worryingly the ability for the vehicle to stop and turn safely. The tyre pressure details are in your handbook (the thing in its original wrapper in your glove box), these can be a little complicated as there are different pressures for different applications so take your time to get it right and make a note of the ones that apply to your circumstances.
You should also check your wheel nuts are secure. This can be a little more difficult as most vehicles now have alloy wheels rather than steel ones, so standing on the tyre wrench is not a good idea! You will need a torque wrench to do this properly, but most tyre outlets will do a safety check for you, so get them to check your nuts for you.
DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CHANGE A WHEEL YOURSELF
The changing of wheels is highly dangerous. This is because the side of the road is a dangerous place (Average life expectancy on the hard shoulder of a motorway is 30 minutes before someone crashes into you) and most people do not carry the correct tools or have the skills to do it.
I suggest you call out the RAC or AA or similar agency or a tyre company.
Nigel
Nigel Grainger is the senior consultant and Fleet Risk Management, the first resort for companies with fleets that want to have robust policies in place, to protect them and their employees.
Sarah Arrow
www.thecouriershop.co.uk
www.ArrowLightHaulage.co.uk
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