Flat tyres are a major pain to deal with, and have a nasty habit of occurring just when you need it the least. You go to leave for work or attend an important appointment only to have all your plans thrown into chaos by a puncture in one of your tyres.

Not fun at all. Sometimes, there is simply nothing you can do to avoid a flat tyre, they are just the risk you take as a motorist, and a nail or piece of debris causes your tyre to deflate rapidly. Other times, however, punctures will be less obvious and will cause the tyre to deflate over a long period of time.

Knowing the common signs of these slow punctures will allow you to identify an issue before it escalates to a full on flat tyre and leaves you stranded at the roadside.

5 signs of a slow puncture

Repeated low tyre pressure

Tires do lose a certain amount of air over time and it is important to check that your tyres are properly inflates on a regular basis. If you find that one tyre needs topping up more frequently than the others, there is a good chance that there is a slow puncture somewhere and it might be worth having the tyre examined by a professional or replaced.

Warning Light

If you are lucky enough to own a more modern vehicle, it may well come equipped with a TPMS, or tyre pressure monitoring system, that automatically turns on a warning light on your dashboard if any of your tyres drop in pressure.

Uneven or worn tread

Again, tyres do wear over time through regular use, and it is essential that owners monitor their tread depth carefully to keep their vehicle road legal.

If you have spotted that there is uneven tyre wear on one of your tyres, this could be an indication of a slow puncture and you should definitely get it checked out.

Bulging tyres

A bulge in your tyre is not only a sign of a weak spot caused by a slow puncture or similar, but is also a very serious safety hazard. If you have a bulge in the sidewall of your tyre, do not use it. Call out a mobile tyre fitter to your location instead.

Vibrations

Shaking or an increase in vibration whilst driving is a lesser known sign that your tyres have become unbalanced and a slow puncture is a common cause.

If you do discover a slow puncture on your car, or suddenly find yourself with a completely flat tyre, and don’t have a spare, the fastest way to get back out on the road safely is to contact a professional mobile tyre fitting expert in your area. Companies such as mobile tyres will send their technicians to your home, workplace, or straight to the roadside, where they will either patch repair your tyre or replace it with a lovely new one of your choice.