Does the age of a tyre matter?

Tyre Safety: 5 Year Rule

Tyres are considered to be “new” and fit for retail up to 5 years from the date of production.

This is an industry standard based on the German BRV.

When in use, it is recommended that tyres are replaced when they reach 6 - 10 years old, (6 years in the case of caravans or trailers).

How to check expiry date of tyres

Tyres do not actually have an official expiry date.

But you can tell the age of a tyre using the DOT code.

Once you know the age of the tyre you can gauge if/when it will need to replaced – if the condition of the tyre does not force to change sooner.

How To Tell A Tyre's Age

On the sidewall you will find a tyre's ‘DOT code’. One of the key pieces of information that can be gained from this is the date the tyre was manufactured.

Since the year 2000, the date section of the code - the last digits - has been made up of 4 numbers.

The first two digits tell you the week number and the last two indicate the year the tyre was manufactured. For example if the final for numbers of the DOT code are '3919'. This means the tyre was made in the 39th week of the year 2019.