With the tire label, the EU Commission has created new product information that allows consumers to see important performance characteristics of a tire at a glance. These include rolling resistance, braking distance on wet roads and rolling noise. From June 1, tire manufacturers will be allowed to advertise with the label; from November 1, 2012, all new tires must be marked with the label in the sales rooms of car and tire dealers. The labeling requirement applies to all tires produced from 1 July 2012. Tires produced before this date do not have to be labeled. This is reported by the trade magazine "kfz-betrieb" in its current issue, which will be published on May 16.
Although these deadlines are approaching, only a small minority of drivers are aware of the tire label. This was the result of a survey conducted by the trade magazine "kfz-betrieb" in cooperation with the monitoring organization KÜS. 87% of drivers are not yet aware of the labeling requirement. There is a need for clarification here - after all, 57% of those surveyed believe that the information on wet grip, rolling resistance/fuel consumption and noise emissions is helpful for their purchasing decision.
In response to the question "Which criteria are important to you when you next buy tires?", 98% of respondents named "product quality". This was followed by "price" (83%), "accessibility of the dealership" (78%), "service" (77%) and "advice" (76%).
"kfz-betrieb" is the most widely read trade magazine in the automotive industry and has been informing the automotive trade and service sector for over 100 years. "kfz-betrieb" is the official organ of the German automotive trade (ZDK), the professional lobby for around 38,000 car dealerships and workshops. News from the entire automotive industry is available at www.kfz-betrieb.de and in the daily newsletter. The parent company Vogel Business Media is one of Germany's leading providers of specialist information with around 100 trade journals and over 100 web portals, business events and numerous international activities. Its headquarters are in Würzburg. The company celebrated its 120th birthday in 2011.
