Confusion reigns over legal status of tyres

Summer crackdown causes confusion.

Scores of UAE truck operators are being caught with ‘illegal’ tyres as the Ministry of the Interior crack down on old, overloaded or worn rubber as the temperature soars.

However, there have been allegations that hard-up or unscrupulous operators have been ‘renting’ tyres from merchants, or simply switching wheels from truck to truck in order to pass vehicle tests for renewal.

Over 2,000 trucks and cars were found to be running on ‘unsafe’ tyres in Dubai and Sharjah as part of the nationwide inspection, according to press reports in the UAE.

However, a good many truck operators appear to have been included in this number, who have simply brought their trucks in for registration renewal with retreaded tyres fitted to the tractors and trailers.

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Retread tyres are not illegal in the UAE (as discussed elsewhere in the issue) In fact, their use is cautiously encouraged as it reduces the number of tyres festering on toxic dumps.

However, the Khaleej Times newspaper reports Colonel Saif Rashid Muhair of the general department of traffic in Dubai police as saying that ‘1,210 heavy vehicles have been fined for violating safety rules for using retread tyres.’

All new tyre casings have a date code stamped on the sidewall, which is used in certain jurisdictions to dictate the useful life of a tyre.

Properly remade tyres have a new code put on the sidewall, which supersedes any other markings. 

Interestingly, all parties agree that the sale of secondhand tyres is perfectly legal, providing they are not too old and in  good condition inside and out.

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