Hampshire road safety specialist urges people to check cars after huge rise in unroadworthy vehicles
Drivers are being urged to have regular services on their vehicles
Last updated 13th Aug 2025
A Hampshire road safety specialist is urging people to get their cars checked regularly, as the UK experiences a huge rise in unroadworthy cars.
The number of motorists caught driving unroadworthy vehicles jumped up by 52% last year, new figures from the RAC revealed.
Rob Heard MBE, a road safety consultant and former road policing officer says we need to look after our vehicles.
He said: "A lot of people financially have difficulty these days because a lot of our water bills, energy bills, cost of living, food is increasing year on year.
"With that, people are having to find ways that they pull the buckles in, and sometimes that's the maintenance of our vehicles.
"Sometimes those tyres might be wearing a little bit more, maybe I could get a few extra miles out of that.
"We might think maybe that okay, every year I used to service my vehicle, but maybe I'll put that to every two years now.
"We know that some people are deciding to try and avoid that and think, it's okay unless I get stopped.
"But you know, we all need to make sure that vehicles we're in are safe.
"I would recommend changing our tyres regularly.
"Yes, the legal limit is 1 1/2 millimetres, but actually, under three millimetres, if we had some heavy showers like we do have, we can be aquaplaning on the top of it.
"We need good grip on our tyres to be able to stick to the road.
"Often, we're carrying our loved ones and our families in those vehicles and actually, we need to make sure that we're protecting them as well because they're getting in that car with confidence that you've looked after that vehicle you're taking them in."
The road safety specialist is encouraging everyone to get regular services.
He added: "We need to make sure we have a regular service to change the oil, check the air filters, the brakes, tyres, exhaust, does the steering fit and work well?
"Remember, a car is a lethal weapon and if it's not safe, we could be a danger to ourselves and to other people as well.
"None of us would want to cause the death or injury to someone else by our actions."