Why don UK drivers use snow tyres?
I think what we are talking about are really “winter” tyres not just “snow” tyres. Winter tyres are made from a compound that works best at below 7C and improve driving in wet/snow/ice in colder weather. They are suitable for use in warmer weather but wear at a faster rate and therefore are not as economical to use. These winter tyres improve driving in winter conditions, not just snow, and would benefit (safety) UK drivers from say November/December until March/April. Since there is no requirement to either fit these (most of northern Europe) nor to have condition appropriate tyres to avoid fines (Germany’s new law), they are generally not in use in the UK. I’ll say this again, if the temperature is lower than 7C and the road is wet or icy then these tyres are safer than the normal all season tyres fitted in the UK. This is the condition in most of the UK for at least four months in the year, we are not talking about a week of suitable weather.
