Where we can do this
Everything is done where the car is, so it needs to be somewhere safe and legal, with firm, level ground and room beside it: a driveway, a quiet street, or a car park where the owner allows it.
Emergency mobile tyre fitting in Ampthill
Ampthill is about 33 miles in a straight line from our only base at Brent Cross, NW2 (further by road). Call and we will tell you straight away whether we can take the job; if we can, the arrival time is given on the call.
Emergency fitting
Emergency tyre fitting at the car, wherever it is safe to work
Emergency mobile tyre fitting means the whole job is done where the car is, so it does not need to be driven or recovered to a garage. The fitter brings the equipment to take the tyre off the wheel, repair it or fit a new one, and balance the wheel at the kerb.
Tell us where the car is, the tyre size and what happened, and send a photo if you can. Urgent jobs are fitted in if the diary allows. The car must be somewhere safe and legal, such as a driveway, a quiet street or a car park where the owner allows it. We never work on the carriageway of a motorway or main road, on a hard shoulder, in a smart motorway emergency area or on a slip road. Our emergency tyre replacement page, linked below, has more detail.
What the job includes
- A plain answer on the call about whether we can take the job
- A repair when the damage allows it, a new tyre when it does not
- The tyre fitted and balanced where the car is parked
- Wheel nuts tightened to the maker's setting
- The old tyre taken away
What to have ready
Before you call
Have these ready when you call:
- Where the car is, and whether it is somewhere safe and legal
- The tyre size from the sidewall, for example 205/55 R16
- What happened: a puncture, a flat tyre, a burst, or a cut or bulge in the tyre
- Whether the car has locking wheel nuts, and where the key is
- A photo of the damage on WhatsApp, if you can send one
Not quite your situation?
Staying safe
Staying safe until the job is done
While you wait for the fitter
- Stop somewhere off the main flow of traffic, switch on the hazard lights and, if you have one, put on a high-visibility vest.
- Get everyone out on the side away from the traffic and wait behind a barrier, on a pavement or well back from the road.
- Keep your phone on and charged, and tell us about anything that makes the spot hard to find.
Tyre failure on a motorway
- If the car can still be driven safely, carry on to the next exit or services and stop away from traffic before you call.
- If you cannot leave, use an emergency area or the hard shoulder, stop well to the left and, if it is safe to, get out on the side away from the traffic.
- Wait behind the barrier, not in the car. Rule 277 of the Highway Code says not to attempt any repairs on your vehicle on a motorway.
- Call 999 if you are in danger or stuck in a live lane. Otherwise National Highways can be reached on 0300 123 5000.
Urgent jobs
How an urgent job is fitted in
An urgent job is fitted into the day's work when the diary allows. We run more than one van, and if one is already working nearby that can help, but we never promise a slot we cannot keep.
On the call we tell you honestly whether we can take the job and, if we can, when to expect the fitter. If we cannot, we say so at once so you can make other plans, such as calling your breakdown cover.
The more you can tell us, the easier the job is to plan: the tyre size, where the damage is, a photo on WhatsApp and exactly where the car is.
Step by step
From your call to the finished job
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Tell us what happened
Call or WhatsApp with where the car is, the registration and the tyre size from the sidewall. A photo of the damage helps find the right replacement.
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Agree what happens next
You hear what the job involves and the options for your car. Nothing is booked until you say yes.
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Work at the car
The fitter comes to your home, your workplace or a safe place to park, raises the car on a jack and does the job beside it.
Checked before the fitter leaves
Before the fitter leaves, the wheel is checked for security and the tyre pressure is set to the maker's figure.
Repair or replace
Repair or replace: how the decision is made
Most punctures from a nail or screw in the middle of the tread can be repaired. The decision is made with the tyre off the wheel, because the outside of a tyre does not show everything. BS AU 159, the British Standard for car tyre repairs, sets out which damage can be repaired and how the repair must be done.
The shoulder and the sidewall are never repaired. They flex with every turn of the wheel, and the sidewall has no steel belt behind it for a repair to hold against, so a patch there can let go without warning.
A tyre that has been driven while flat is the other common reason. Even a short distance on a flat tyre can crush the inner wall, and that damage is often invisible until the tyre is off the rim.
The tyre is replaced rather than repaired when:
- The damage is in the shoulder or the sidewall
- The hole is wider than 6 mm, or it is a cut rather than a hole
- The inner wall shows damage from running flat
- A new repair would overlap an earlier one
- The tread is already at or below the legal minimum of 1.6 mm
- The tyre has a bulge, a split or exposed cords
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Tyres and the law
Tread depth, tyre age and the law
The legal tread limit
Cars and light vans need at least 1.6 mm of tread across the central three-quarters of the tyre, around the whole circumference.
For a car, each illegal tyre can bring a fine of up to £2,500 and three penalty points; the maximum fine for a van is higher.
The 20p test
Push a 20p coin into the main grooves at several points around the tyre. If the outer band of the coin is visible, the tread may be close to the limit and should be measured properly.
Other defects that make a tyre illegal
A tyre is also illegal with a cut longer than 25 mm or a tenth of its section width, whichever is greater, that reaches the ply or cord, a lump or bulge, exposed cords, or the wrong size or type for the car.
How old is your tyre?
The last four digits of the DOT code on the sidewall give the week and year of manufacture, so 2319 means the 23rd week of 2019.
Rubber hardens and cracks with age even on a tyre that has done few miles, and many tyre makers advise replacing any tyre ten years old or more.
Pricing
How the price is worked out
There is no fixed figure that suits every car, so the price is built from a few things and told to you before you decide.
The price is the same at any hour. Asking for a price does not commit you to anything.
When you compare prices, compare like with like: the same brand and pattern, the same load index and speed rating, and whether balancing and a new valve are part of the job.
What goes into the price
- The tyre itself: size, load index, speed rating and whether it is a run-flat
- The tier you choose: budget, mid-range or premium
- The work: a repair, one new tyre or several, and any locking nut removal
- The location of the car
Around the area
Neighbourhoods, roads and nearby towns
These are the neighbourhoods, postcode districts and main roads on record for this area. Whether we can take a particular job depends on the diary and the distance from our base, so the call always decides.
Neighbourhoods and villages
- Ampthill Great Park
- Maulden
- Clophill
- Millbrook
- Houghton Conquest
- Steppingley
- Marston Moretaine
- Flitton
Postcode districts
- MK45
Main roads
- A507
- A5120
- M1 J13
- A6
Landmarks
- Houghton House
- Katherine's Cross
The same service in nearby towns
Questions
Questions and answers
Can I claim for pothole damage?
You may be able to claim from the council or the authority that looks after the road. Note the location, photograph the pothole and the tyre, and keep the receipt.
What should I do if a tyre bursts while I am driving?
Hold the wheel firmly, keep straight, ease off the accelerator and avoid braking hard. Once the car has slowed, brake gently and pull over where it is safe.
Is there any way to save a burst tyre?
No. A burst or a split sidewall destroys the structure of the tyre, so it is always replaced.
Will the wheel be damaged too?
It can be. The rim is inspected with the tyre off, and you are told if it is bent or cracked before the new tyre is fitted.
Do I need to replace both tyres on the axle?
Not always. If the other tyre on that axle has good tread and is the same size and pattern, one new tyre can be enough.
Is a bulge in the sidewall dangerous?
Yes. A bulge means the internal cords have broken and the tyre can fail without warning. Do not drive on it further than you need to reach a safe place.
Can I bring the car to you instead?
No. Rescue Tyres is fully mobile and works from one base at Brent Cross, NW2, which is not open to walk-in customers. The fitter comes to the car.
Can you work on the street outside my house?
Yes, if it is legal to park there and the car is not blocking traffic. A quiet residential street is usually fine; a busy main road or a red route is not.
What if the tyre needs replacing rather than repairing?
You are told before anything else is done, with the reason and the options for a new tyre in your size. Nothing changes until you agree.
Are you insured?
Yes. Rescue Tyres is fully insured, has fitted more than 2,000 tyres and is a UK registered company.
Helpful guides
Tyre advice worth reading
You don't always need four new tyres. Here's when you can replace just one, when you should do a pair, and when all-wheel-drive means replacing all four.
Buckled alloy wheel: the signs and the fix
A buckled wheel causes vibration, slow air loss and uneven wear. Here's how to spot one, how it differs from a balance problem, and whether it can be repaired.
A blowout at speed is frightening but survivable if you react correctly. Here's exactly what to do, why braking is dangerous, and how to prevent the next one.
All tyre help here
Every tyre service, done at the car
Call to check we can take the job
Tell us where the car is
Get the car somewhere safe, send a photo of the damage and the size, and the new tyre comes to the car. The price is given on the call.