The Moment of a Blowout: Stay Calm

A tyre blowout at motorway speed is sudden and alarming. The car may lurch dramatically to one side or the steering may feel heavy and unresponsive. The natural instinct is to brake hard and swerve — resist this.

Instead, grip the steering wheel firmly with both hands. Do not brake sharply. Keep the car pointing straight and gradually ease off the accelerator to slow down naturally. Steer gently towards the hard shoulder or emergency refuge area, signalling as you go.

Getting to Safety on a Motorway

Once on the hard shoulder or in an emergency refuge area, switch on your hazard lights immediately. If you're on a smart motorway with no hard shoulder, aim for the nearest Emergency Refuge Area (ERA) — marked by orange SOS signs and an orange-painted area.

If you cannot reach a refuge area, stop as far to the left as possible. Once stopped, exit the vehicle from the left (passenger) side, stay behind the crash barrier, and move well away from the vehicle and carriageway. Do not attempt to change the tyre yourself on a live motorway.

After the Blowout: Getting Help

From safety behind the barrier, call for emergency roadside tyre fitting assistance. Easy Mobile Tyres provides 24-hour emergency call-out services. Give us your motorway number, junction number or milepost number (shown on blue marker posts on the hard shoulder) and we'll dispatch a technician to your location.

A blowout nearly always requires full tyre replacement — the tyre will be destroyed beyond repair. Our emergency mobile tyre vans carry a range of sizes and can get you back on the road without needing a recovery truck in most cases.