TYRES could be the fatal weakness of fleet safety policies, according to Tyreserve.

The AA-owned company has highlighted research showing that as many as half of the tyres used on UK roads are in some way falling foul of legislation.

David Goodyear, general manager of Tyreserve, said: 'That figure almost certainly does not hold true for company vehicles but blanket checks of tyres across entire fleets regularly show 10-15% to be illegal and unsafe.'

He believes tyres could be the weakest point of many fleet safety policies at a time when the Government wants employers to take greater responsibility for the health and safety of at-work drivers.

'Every other maintenance factor can be controlled through scheduled servicing but tyre safety relies on drivers making their own regular checks,' said Goodyear.

He called on employers to ensure all their drivers are aware of the importance of staying within the legal bounds of tyre wear and damage, as well as correct inflation.

'If fleet managers find themselves facing charges relating to poor fleet maintenance after a driver has died in an accident, the fact that the vehicle was running on worn and incorrectly inflated tyres will not help their case,' he said.