New £8 Lidl '5-in-1' car gadget out Sunday helps drivers avoid £2,500 fine and points

New £8 Lidl '5-in-1' car gadget out Sunday helps drivers avoid £2,500 fine and points Shoppers don't have long to wait to get their hands on the new multi-purpose gadget UK drivers could avoid the risk of facing hefty fines and points on their licence by using a new gadget coming to Lidl stores this weekend. Failing to maintain correct tyre pressures and tread depths could result in major financial penalties and an immediate driving ban. Under strict UK road traffic laws, police officers can issue fines on a per-tyre basis, meaning a vehicle with a full set of defective tyres could cost a motorist up to £10,000 in court fees alongside 12 penalty points, in the most severe case. To stay compliant with current road safety regulations, a car's tyre tread depth must be at least 1.6mm across the central three-quarters of the tread width. This depth must run continuously around the entire outer circumference of the rubber. Driving on tyres that fall below this legal threshold significantly compromises vehicle handling, dramatically increases wet-weather stopping distances, and greatly increases the risk of aquaplaning. While minor pressure fluctuations are rarely subject to immediate penalties, driving with severely under-inflated or over-inflated tyres renders a vehicle legally "unfit for purpose." If an officer determines that an improper inflation level poses an active danger to steering or braking stability, the infraction carries the same legal weight as a bald tyre: an immediate £2,500 fine and three penalty points per wheel. Plus, driving with illegal tread or incorrect pressures automatically fails an MOT test. It also risks completely invalidating a motorist's insurance policy in the event of an accident. To reduce these risks, road safety experts recommend carrying a multi-functional diagnostic tool in the vehicle's glove box. Lidl is releasing one of these tools this weekend. The store will be bringing out its Ultimate Speed 5-in-1 Tyre Pressure Gauge on Sunday, September 27. The low-cost tool can help act as a defence against these heavy penalties. It'll cost £7.99 for Lidl Plus members, and £9.99 for regular shoppers. The compact gadget features a digital air-pressure reader that displays accurate readings in PSI or bar, along with an integrated manual tread-depth gauge. By using the tool's built-in colour-coded traffic light index, drivers can identify when a tyre enters the critical red zone (under 2mm), signalling that it needs replacing before reaching the illegal 1.6mm limit. In the product description, Lidl says: "Digital 5-in-1 tyre pressure and tread gauge. With five practical functions - digital air pressure gauge, LED light, emergency hammer, seat belt cutter, tyre tread depth gauge. Simple and reliable tyre pressure check, instantly shown on the backlit LCD display. "Reliable tread depth measurement - indicates tyre depth with blue, yellow or red. With a battery-saving auto switch-off function. Suitable for cars, off-road vehicles, motorcycles or bicycles with Schrader valves. With four measuring unit options: PSI, bar, kPa, kg/ cm²." It is important for drivers to check tyre pressures when the tyres are cold because driving generates friction, which heats up the air inside the tyres and causes it to expand. This expansion artificially inflates the tyre pressure reading on a gauge.