Driving offence
Defective tyre offence fine calculator
Choose the factors in the court guideline and enter weekly net income where it applies.
Summary: The ordinary starting point is a Band B fine and 3 points. The fine is imposed per tyre, with one set of points normally used for offences on the same occasion. This is an adult magistrates' court guideline for England and Wales.
Checked on .
- CU30 endorsementPoints, retention and declaration rules.
- All driving offencesCompare eight common offence guidelines.
- Drink driving sentence calculatorThe alcohol reading selects the guideline row. A court must disqualify for at least 12 months and decides the final sentence after all case factors.
- Drug driving sentence calculatorThe guideline combines culpability and harm. It says a drug level cannot be directly connected to harm, so the calculator does not ask for one.
Guideline categories and sentence ranges
| Category | Starting point | Sentence range | Disqualification | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Driver | Band B fine | Discharge to Band C fine | No numerical range published | 3 points |
| Business driver | Band B fine | Discharge to Band C fine | No numerical range published | 3 points |
| Business owner and driver | Band B fine with at least 25 per cent uplift | Discharge to Band C fine | No numerical range published | 3 points |
| Owner company | Band C fine | Discharge to Band C fine | Not available to a company | Not available to a company |
Which factors does the guideline use?
- Business owner-drivers receive at least a 25 per cent uplift.
- An owner company starts at a Band C fine.
Why is this not a sentence prediction?
- The court decides the sentence. This calculator reports the guideline and is not a prediction.
- A separate fine applies to each defective tyre. The guideline says one set of points will normally cover multiple offences on the same occasion.
What is the penalty for a defective tyre?
The published fixed penalty is £200 and 3 points. The ordinary court starting point is a Band B fine and 3 points. The fine is imposed per tyre. One set of points will normally cover offences on the same occasion. The court maximum on this page is £2,500 per tyre for a vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes. A business owner and driver receives at least a 25 per cent uplift. An owner company starts at a Band C fine and cannot take points or a ban as a company.
On £500 a week, Band B starts at £500. With a 25 per cent owner-driver uplift that becomes £625.00. Two illegal tyres therefore start at two fines, and still one set of 3 points on the ordinary driver row. That is how a 'couple of bald tyres' becomes a four-figure court case without becoming a 6 point case.
The legal tread minimum and the construction defects that make a tyre illegal sit on the tyre tread material on this site. This page is the sentence. A tyre that is illegal on one axle is still one tyre. A spare in the boot is not usually the offence. The tyres on the road are.
- Police or DVSA inspect the tyres, often at a stop, a collision, or a roadside check.
- Each defective tyre can attract a £200 fixed penalty. Points are 3, normally one set for the same occasion.
- In court the role can be driver, business driver, owner-driver or owner company.
- The fine is set per tyre on the published band, with the 25 per cent owner-driver uplift where that row applies.
- Replace the tyres. The sentence does not make the vehicle legal. Only a legal tyre does that.
Example
A private driver, two illegal tyres, £500 a week net
- Role
- Driver
- Defective tyres
- 2
- Relevant weekly income
- £500
- Fixed penalty each
- £200
- The driver row starts at a Band B fine per tyre.
- Band B is £500 on £500 a week, so two tyres start at £1,000.
- Points remain 3 for the occasion, not 6, on the guideline's ordinary rule.
- The out of court offer, if made per tyre, is £200 each, still with one set of 3 points.
- A new driver with 3 points already is revoked by these 3 more.
Two tyres, one driver: starting fines £500 plus £500 on £500 a week, and 3 points for the occasion. The money stacks. The points, ordinarily, do not.
Why do points not double when two tyres fail?
The guideline says one set of points will normally cover multiple offences on the same occasion. Two bald tyres on the same stop are usually 3 points, not 6. That 'normally' is the guideline's word. A court dealing with tyres on different dates is not the same occasion. A driver who ignores the first ticket and is stopped a month later with the same rubber is on a second occasion.
Three points is enough to revoke a new driver who already holds 3, and enough to take a driver from 9 to 12 for totting. People hear 'points do not double' and think the licence is safe. The money is what doubles. The points still arrive once, and once can be enough.
An owner company cannot take points. The company is fined on Band C. The driver of that company van can still be sentenced on the driver row with 3 points. Both can be in court. That is how a fleet case produces a company fine and a driver's CU30 at the same time.
How does CU30 affect a new driver, a van and a hire car?
CU30 stays 4 years from the offence and counts for 3 years towards totting. DVLA publishes 3 points, which matches this guideline. A new driver with 3 existing points who then collects CU30 is at 6 and is revoked. A new driver whose first endorsement is CU30 is halfway to revocation.
Hire cars and courtesy cars still need legal tyres. The driver can be charged even though the hire firm owns the vehicle. The owner-company row is how the firm is sentenced if it is prosecuted. Do not assume a hire sticker is a defence. Check the tyres before you leave the forecourt.
Motorcycles have their own tread rules on the tyre pages. This guideline is still the defective tyre sentence. A trailer tyre can also be a defective tyre. The maximum quoted on this page is for a vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes. Heavier vehicles have no invented ceiling on this page.
- Fixed penalty £200 and 3 points.
- Driver start Band B, £500 on £500 a week, per tyre.
- Owner-driver start at least 25 per cent higher, £625.00 per tyre.
- Owner company starts at Band C. Points attach to a human driver, not to the company.
Does this tyre guideline apply in Scotland?
The Band B and Band C figures, the 25 per cent uplift and the £2,500 per tyre maximum on this page are England and Wales Sentencing Council figures. Legal tyres are still required in Scotland and Northern Ireland. CU30 can still go on a GB licence. Do not treat ${gbp(B.start)} as a Scottish starting fine.
DVSA roadside checks operate in Great Britain. Northern Ireland has its own enforcement. A foreign vehicle on a UK road still needs tyres that meet the UK rule. A winter tyre that is legal in another country can still be below the UK tread minimum.
Insurance can refuse a claim on illegal tyres after a collision. That is a policy point. This page does not publish a national average increase, because no official CU30 premium figure exists.
What do people get wrong about defective tyre fines?
The first myth is that the advisory 3 millimetre chatter is the legal limit. The legal minimum is on the tyre tread pages. This page sentences a tyre that is already illegal. The second myth is that two tyres mean 6 points. Ordinarily they mean two fines and 3 points. The third is that a 'just failed' MOT advisory is already this offence. An advisory is not a conviction. An illegal tyre on the road is.
People also think a spare wheel with legal tread saves them, that a hire car shifts the blame entirely, and that a company van means only the company is fined. The driver row still exists. Ignoring the notice because you have booked a fitting for Friday does not cover Thursday's miles.
A space-saver spare used beyond its published limit is a facts argument, not a discount published in this guideline. If the tyre in contact with the road is defective, this row is in play.
Common questions
- Is the fine charged per tyre?
- Yes. The guideline says the fine is imposed for each tyre. On £500 a week a Band B starting point is £500 per tyre for a driver, or £625.00 per tyre for an owner-driver after the 25 per cent uplift. The published fixed penalty is £200 each. This page's ceiling is £2,500 for each tyre on a vehicle up to 3.5 tonnes.
- How many points apply for two bald tyres?
- The guideline requires 3 points and says one set will normally cover offences on the same occasion. Two tyres at the same stop are ordinarily 3 points, not 6. Different dates are different occasions. A new driver who already holds 3 points is still revoked by these 3. A driver on 9 is still toted up. The money stacks. The points, normally, do not.
- I am a new driver with 3 points. What does CU30 do?
- It adds 3. That is 6, which revokes a licence inside 2 years of the first pass. The fact that two tyres did not double the points does not save you. A provisional and a retake of theory and practical are the route back. Replace the tyres before the next drive. The revocation is about the points, not about how many millimetres the second tyre was short.
- Does a hire car or company van change the sentence?
- The driver can still be sentenced on the driver row with 3 points. A business owner and driver gets the 25 per cent uplift. An owner company starts at Band C and cannot take points. A hire firm can be the owner. You can still be the driver. Checking the tyres before you leave is cheaper than arguing about it after a stop.
- How long does CU30 stay on my licence?
- 4 years from the date of the offence, counting towards totting for 3 years. DVLA publishes 3 points. Insurers ask about unspent convictions. No official CU30 premium percentage is published. Illegal tyres can also affect a claim if you collide while they are on the car. Answer the questions you are asked and replace the rubber.
- What is the legal tread depth this fine relates to?
- This page is the sentence for a defective tyre. The legal minimum tread and the other defects that make a tyre illegal sit on the tyre tread material on this site, taken from the published construction and use rules. Do not treat a garage's 3 millimetre advisory as the legal limit, and do not treat an advisory as this offence until the tyre is actually illegal and in use on the road.
- Does Band B apply in Scotland?
- No. These bands, the 25 per cent uplift and the £2,500 per tyre maximum are England and Wales figures. Scotland and Northern Ireland still require roadworthy tyres. CU30 can still appear on a Great Britain licence. Use the local court process for a Scottish or Northern Ireland stop. Do not import ${gbp(B.start)} as a local tariff.
- Can a company get points for bald tyres?
- No. The owner-company row starts at a Band C fine. Points and a disqualification are not available to a company on this guideline. The human driver of that company's vehicle can still receive 3 points on the driver row. Fleet cases often involve both. The company's fine does not absorb the driver's CU30.
Related pages
- Drink driving sentence calculatorThe alcohol reading selects the guideline row. A court must disqualify for at least 12 months and decides the final sentence after all case factors.
- Drug driving sentence calculatorThe guideline combines culpability and harm. It says a drug level cannot be directly connected to harm, so the calculator does not ask for one.
- Mobile phone driving offence sentenceThe fixed penalty is £200 and 6 points. In court the ordinary starting point is a Band B fine, raised to Band C for the factors stated in the guideline.
- Driving without insurance sentence calculatorThe fixed penalty is £300 and 6 points. A court uses culpability and harm to select one of three categories and can impose an unlimited fine or disqualification.
Sources
Guideline and penalty figures were checked against the linked official pages on 10 September 2026.
- Sentencing Council for England and Wales, Tyres defective (as of 10 September 2026)
- Sentencing Council for England and Wales, Approach to fines: fine bands (as of 10 September 2026)
- Sentencing Council for England and Wales, Out of court disposals (as of 10 September 2026)
- Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, Penalty points endorsements: new drivers (as of 10 September 2026)
- legislation.gov.uk, Road Traffic Offenders Act 1988, section 29 (as of 10 September 2026)