The fly-tipping of tyres has risen by a quarter in the last year, according to data released by the Department of Environment , Food and Rural Affairs (Defra). Meanwhile, incidents of vehicle part dumping have risen by 15%.
The data shows that in 2020/21, 15,076 tyres were dumped illegally in England, while 9,427 vehicle parts were fly-tipped. On the whole, total incidents increased by almost 16%, to 1,134,211.
The figure for tyre fly-tipping is the worst since 2011/12, while for vehicle parts, the issue has not been as bad since 2009/10. This comes despite a fall in the total number of miles driven during the COVID-19 pandemic, and fewer replacement tyres being fitted as a result. The Department for Transport (DfT) states that in 2020, passenger car mileage decreased 24.7%, while light-commercial vehicle (LCV) miles dropped 9.1% on 2019 figures.
Figures from the European Tyre and Rubber Manufacturers Assocation (ETRMA) show that in 2020, sales of consumer tyres fell from around 18 million in 2019, to just around 15 million last year.
Regional variations
Analysis of the data by Kwik Fit shows that in the North West region, the number of fly-tipping incidents rose by 80%, and in the West Midlands by 67%. In only one English region did the number of incidents fall over the last year – the East of England saw a 5% decrease.
| Region | Number of reported incidents of fly tipping of tyres | Year on year change | |
| 2019-20 | 2020-21 | ||
| Eastern England | 1522 | 1453 | -5% |
| Yorkshire and The Humber | 1261 | 1420 | 13% |
| South West | 1668 | 1921 | 15% |
| North East | 1011 | 1191 | 18% |
| South East | 2204 | 2616 | 19% |
| East Midlands | 1663 | 1991 | 20% |
| London | 1038 | 1523 | 47% |
| West Midlands | 919 | 1537 | 67% |
| North West | 790 | 1424 | 80% |
| Total England | 12076 | 15076 | 25% |
Although the past decade had seen a steady reduction in the cases of tyres being illegally dumped, even before the pandemic the figure remained stubbornly high, equivalent to around 35 incidents per day. The figures cannot be directly compared due to changes on reporting methods, but the latest data indicates that around eight years progress has been lost.
“There is absolutely no excuse for a tyre to be fly tipped,” commented Roger Griggs, communications director at Kwik Fit. “Tyre dealers must ensure that used tyres are dealt with by a registered waste company and those companies have a duty to process them responsibly. Although they need to be covered by a ‘waste’ licence, used tyres still have value as a raw material and therefore it makes even less sense for them to be fly tipped.”
