Supply or distribute vehicle tyres: labelling rules
Rules about the labels that tyres must display to give information about fuel efficiency, wet grip and noise classification.
Tyres sold on the UK and EU market must have labels that give information about:
- fuel consumption
- wet grip
- noise classification
What tyres the rules apply to
This applies to tyres for:
- cars
- vans
- heavy trucks
Exemptions
The rules do not cover:
- retreaded tyres
- professional off-road tyres
- temporary-use spare tyres
- studded tyres
- tyres used only for racing
- tyres whose speed rating is less than 80 km/h
- tyres to be fitted only on vehicles registered for the first time before 1 October 1990
- tyres whose nominal diameter is smaller than 254 mm or bigger than 635 mm
- tyres produced before 1 July 2012 for which grading/labelling was not performed
Where you have to display the label
The information must be available:
- on the manufacturer’s website
- in leaflets
- in brochures
How the label system works
The label classifies tyres from A (the highest performing) to G (the lowest performing).
Example of a tyre label
What the label must display
The label must display the:
- fuel efficiency associated to the tyre’s rolling resistance
- tyre’s external noise level (shown in decibels); not any tyre noise heard inside the vehicle
- the impact on vehicle safety associated to the tyre’s wet grip
Fuel efficiency
Reducing the rolling resistance of a tyre reduces the amount of fuel a vehicle consumes less fuel.
Work out the fuel efficiency for the tyre label by:
- following the process in annex I of the regulation
- measuring it in accordance with the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) Regulation No. 117 and its subsequent amendments
Wet grip
Wet grip is an important safety characteristic of a tyres as it improves the braking distance of a vehicle .
Work out the wet grip values for the tyre label using the relevant regulations.
| Vehicle class | Legislation detailing how tyre class is calculated |
|---|---|
| C1 | EU Regulation No 228/2011 amending EC Regulation No 1222/2009 |
| C2 and C3 | EU Regulation No 1235/2011 amending EC Regulation No 1222/2009 |
What to do when you supply or distribute tyres
What you need to do depends on whether you supply or distribute tyres.
Tyre suppliers (manufacturers or importers)
If you supply tyres (that is, manufacture or import tyres in the UK and EU), you must:
- either put a sticker on the tyre tread or a label on each delivery of tyres to the dealer and end-user for passenger (car) and light commercial vehicle tyres
- provide technical literature (leaflets, brochures and so on), including on your website for passenger, light commercial vehicles, and truck/bus tyres
Tyre distributors
If you distribute tyres in the EU or UK you must:
- make sure that, at the point of sale, tyres have the sticker or have a label for the end user to see before buying the tyre
- give the information on the fuel efficiency, wet grip (where applicable) and external noise during the buying process if the tyres offered for sale are not visible to the end-user (for passenger and light commercial vehicles tyres)
- give information on or with the bill (for passenger car, light commercial vehicles and truck/bus tyres)
Vehicle suppliers and distributors
If you supply and distribute vehicles in the EU or UK you must provide end-users with information on the fuel efficiency, wet grip (where applicable) and external noise of the tyre that are offered before the sale of the vehicle.
More information
Visit the Tyre Industry Federation website for more guidance.
Visit the European Commission website for more information about the labelling of tyres.
These regulations have more detailed information about the rules:
- Regulation No 1222/2009 (the Labelling of Tyres with respect to Fuel Efficiency and other Essential Parameters)
- Regulation 228/2011 (with regard to the wet grip testing method for C1 tyres)
- Regulation 1235/2011 (with regard to the wet grip grading of tyres, the measurement of rolling resistance and the verification procedure)