DUNLOP is encouraging enthusiast drivers in the UK to rethink how they approach driving this Tyre Safety Month as UK winters become milder and wetter.
Drawing on findings from TyreSafe’s 2026 Tyre Safety Month campaign and recent Met Office climate data, DUNLOP highlights that wet roads are increasingly becoming a normal part of driving life in the UK. And for keen drivers, this means developing and practising their driving skills accordingly.
DUNLOP and its sister brand FALKEN are partnered with TyreSafe, a UK charity dedicated to raising awareness of tyre safety and the risks of poor tyre maintenance. The latest research from TyreSafe has found that 83% of road users believe they are in full control of their stopping distances. Yet only 6% could identify wet weather stopping distances at motorway speeds. Furthermore, 94% of road users underestimate the stopping distance risk in wet conditions.
The UK’s Changing Climate: Winter Driving Conditions are Getting Wetter
The latest climate data from the Met Office also spells out why this matters for the long-term. The ‘State of the UK Climate 2025’ report, published in July this year by the Met Office, says UK winters are getting milder and wetter.
From 2016 to 2025, the UK winter ‘half-year’ (from 1 October to 31 March) has been 13% wetter compared with the period from 1961 to 1990, and 3% wetter than the 1991-2020 baseline. What’s more, occurrences of exceptionally wet winter months have approximately doubled over the last decade compared with the historic average.
Practice Makes Perfect: Skills for Driving More Confidently in the Wet
DUNLOP has outlined four skills for drivers to practice for greater confidence at the wheel when driving in the wet:
- Aim for Smoother Inputs
Smoothness becomes more important when grip levels fall. Drivers should aim to practice smooth steering, braking and acceleration, with less abrupt movements, to allow the tyres to work more progressively. - Look Further Ahead
Good drivers look further ahead and plan earlier, extending their gaze along their desired path rather than right in front of the bonnet. This helps drivers to anticipate earlier, with greater visibility of potential hazards, other vehicles, corners, elevation changes and even changing road surfaces. Leaving a bigger gap between your car and the vehicle in front gives a driver greater scope to see further ahead. In wet weather, building up a minimum four-second gap behind the vehicle in front is good for visibility and safety. And looking further ahead can help drivers in other ways: getting in the right gear for an incline (up or down), maintaining momentum on a favourite road and longer term reducing brake and tyre wear. - Read the Road Surface
Understanding the road surface can make driving more rewarding, and skilled drivers aren’t just on the lookout for potholes. They can keep an eye out for shiny surfaces where there may be reduced traction, drainage channels and worn wheel tracks where aquaplaning could occur, or patches of mud or fallen leaves which can reduce grip. This can even extend to picking out painted lines on the road, which can be particularly slippery when wet. - Match Tyres to the Conditions
Tyres are a car’s only contact points with the road and are key to driving enjoyment and safety in wet conditions. Good tyre maintenance and an appropriate tyre choice are therefore critical factors for maintaining confidence and consistency through the winter. - Age Matters, Not Just Tread Depth
Tyres age even when they are barely used, so check the DOT date code regularly. Cars that sit for long periods or are exposed to weather and strong sunlight may need new tyres after about 6 years. As a general rule, replace tyres after 10 years at the latest, whatever the tread depth.
For a start, drivers should check their tyres aren’t damaged and that they have sufficient tread depth, as well as ensuring they are inflated to their recommended pressures.
The legal minimum tread depth is 1.6 mm, but TyreSafe recommends that drivers be more vigilant and prepare for replacing tyres at the right time, and perhaps with all-season tyres: all the better for tackling the UK’s wet and unpredictable winter driving conditions with confidence.
Thomas Deinhardt, Senior Technical and Service Engineer at Dunlop Tyre Europe: “For drivers in the UK, perhaps the most overlooked driving skill today isn’t the ability to drive quickly. Instead, it may well be learning how to drive confidently in the rain. It’s important for any driver to remain safe when driving in the wet, and many drivers see rain as something that can limit their enjoyment behind the wheel. We would argue the opposite.”
“Driving is a skill people can spend their whole life mastering. And learning how to drive smoothly and safely in wet conditions can help make people better drivers all year round. With data showing UK winters becoming increasingly damp, wet-weather driving is a skill that car enthusiasts can – and should – actively develop.”
Stuart Lovatt, Chair of TyreSafe, said: “Driving in wet weather presents challenges for even the most experienced road users, and our research shows that many have a misplaced confidence in their ability to judge stopping distances in these conditions. As the UK experiences increasingly wet winters, understanding how to adapt our driving to the conditions has never been more important.”
“Developing good driving habits, such as leaving a greater stopping distance, anticipating hazards and accelerating and braking smoothly, can make a real difference to safety. Equally, ensuring tyres are properly maintained and have sufficient tread depth is essential to maintaining grip in wet conditions. Tyre Safety Month is an important opportunity to remind all road users that being prepared for wet weather starts with both their driving behaviour and their tyres.”
