We fit a new tyre at the car when the old one cannot be repaired. Letchworth is about 28 miles in a straight line from our only base at Brent Cross, NW2. We give you an arrival time when you call. Urgent jobs are fitted in if the diary allows.
Some tyre damage cannot be repaired: a blowout, a cut or bulge, sidewall damage or a tyre that has been driven flat. Then the only safe answer is a new tyre. Tell us the size from the sidewall and where the car is. Common sizes are often on the van; other sizes are sourced for the job, and we tell you on the call which applies to yours.
The fitter replaces the tyre at the car, balances the wheel, checks the rim and sets the pressures. If the car is on a busy road, it needs to be moved somewhere safe first, or recovered by your breakdown cover. Our main emergency replacement page, linked below, has more detail.
Have these ready when you call:
The price depends on the size, brand and type of tyre, and is confirmed on the call before the fitter sets off. The price is the same at any hour, with nothing added for an evening, weekend or bank holiday visit.
A driveway or a residential street where the car is legally parked is easiest. The car park at Letchworth Garden City station, the Garden Square shopping centre and business sites such as the Blackhorse Road industrial area are private, so the operator has to allow the work.
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. If the tyre fails near junction 9, leave at the exit if it is safe to do so or call your breakdown cover. On a busy road such as the A505, move into a side street first if it is safe.
The replacement has to be the size the car is built for, with a load index and speed rating at least as high as the maker specifies. All of it is printed on the sidewall of the old tyre, and most cars also have a sticker inside the driver's door or the fuel flap.
Tyres on the same axle should match: the same size and type, ideally the same model, so the car brakes and corners evenly. If the tyre on the other side of the axle is badly worn, it is worth replacing the pair, and we tell you what we find while the car is up.
Four-wheel-drive cars are more sensitive. Some makers ask for all four tyres to be close in tread depth to protect the transmission, so tell us on the call if the car is four-wheel drive.
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.
You hear what the job involves and the options for your car. Nothing is booked until you say yes.
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.
Before the fitter leaves, the wheel is checked for security and the tyre pressure is set to the maker's figure.
Many newer cars, especially some BMW and MINI models, leave the factory on run-flat tyres and carry no spare wheel. The sidewall says so, with a marking such as RSC, ROF, SSR, ZP or RFT depending on the maker.
A car built for run-flats should stay on run-flats, because it has no spare to fall back on and its suspension is set up for their stiffer sidewalls. Tell us on the call if the car has them, so the right tyre is sourced.
“From start to finish, Hiwad was incredibly professional and helpful.”
“Arrived and was very kind and polite. Reassured me about changing the tyres and was quick and attentive straight away.”
“Very quick and efficient service.”
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Yes, if the site allows it. Supermarket, retail park and station car parks are private ground, so the owner's permission comes first. Places of this kind in this area include:
Is sidewall tyre damage repairable?
Bulge, cut or crack in your tyre's sidewall? Here's why sidewall damage almost always means a new tyre, what causes it, and why it's so dangerous.
Tyre blowouts: causes and prevention
Most tyre blowouts are preventable. Here are the main causes, the simple monthly checks that stop them, and what to do if one happens anyway.
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.
Get the car somewhere safe, send a photo of the damage and the size, and the new tyre comes to the car. Tell us what has happened and the make and model of the vehicle. The price is given on the call.
