From this November, all tyres sold will have to show independent ratings for fuel efficiency, safety and noise. They will be categorised using a seven grade ranking scale, similar to the new car CO2 or fridge efficiency labels. From 1 November it will become a legal requirement for tyre retailers to display the new label on all replacement tyres, but labels will start appearing in shops and dealerships from this week. Fuel efficiency (rolling resistance) and safety (wet grip) will be categorised using a seven grade ranking scale.

A top-ranked A-grade tyre could out-perform the lowest-ranked G-grade tyre by 30% for safety and 7.5% for fuel efficiency. This translates to a vehicle stopping three to four car lengths shorter from 50mph and a fuel cost saving of around £100 every year for the average motorist.Tyre manufacturer Continental said, “Continental considers the tyre label to be a real breakthrough in providing standard performance data to motorists in the interest of improving road safety by providing information on wet grip, and for the environment with the classifications for noise and rolling resistance.”However, the EU label only shows three of more than 14 important tyre performance criteria. Tyre tests from magazines will continue to be the most comprehensive source of information for motorists because they provide complete and independent reports covering nearly all criteria for the most popular tyre sizes.”