Drivers should be switching to winter tyres now as the first bite of sub-zero temperatures show what we can expect over the coming months.

Tyre maker, Kumho, says the industry safety watchdog, TyreSafe, recommends that motorists should change to winter-spec treads to keep themselves and other out of trouble.

A Kumho spokesman said: “Humans are quick to wrap up as soon as the thermometer falls, yet some British drivers assume their car tyres will maintain the same level of performance irrespective of the temperature. They won’t, as the majority are ‘summer’ specification products, the tread compound of which tends to harden at ambient temperatures below +7°C, causing a notable reduction in grip. One thing’s for sure, as soon as the winter really bites, the countryside will once again be littered with abandoned cars, as we never seem ready for the inevitable.”

Kumho has three main categories of winter tyres, for cars, SUVs and vans. Its WinterCraft is primarily intended for medium and larger sized cars and comes in sizes ranging from 205/55R16 to 275/35R19. There are also four different run-flat sizes including 225/55R17 and 245/45R18.

The WinterCraft WS71 is for SUV and initially available in 24 sizes and for vans the PorTran CW51 comes in a choice of 18 sizes.