Take a listen to the on-board comms in Formula 1 and you’ll hear drivers saying (usually complaining vigorously) they’re struggling to get heat into the tyres so their lap times are suffering.

For us mere mortals more concerned about commute times than lap times, heat in the tyres isn’t quite the same level of priority – but it’s part of what makes a difference.

In temperatures under seven degrees Celsius, according to Traffic Scotland, winter tyres can reduce stopping distances by as much as 40%. At 40mph, that could be a difference of nearly 22 metres. At 70mph, winter tyres could bring you to a stop 38 metres earlier than standard tyres. A standard swimming pool is 25m, for comparison, so it could mean the difference between avoiding a collision altogether or reducing the severity pretty significantly.

Part of this is down to a softer rubber compound which heats up faster and so grips better in colder weather. Winter tyres also benefit from deeper and more aggressive tread patterns which can bite into winter driving surfaces better than all-weather tyres.

What this means is, as well as shorter stopping distances, your vehicle is likely to behave more predictably in poorer driving conditions. Steering performance should improve and, in the classic Scottish winter downpour where it can feel like there’s more water on your windscreen than on the road, that winter tread pattern disperses more water between the road and the rubber. That reduces the risk of aquaplaning; the scary moment when your tyres lose grip because there’s more water than the tread pattern can clear away. Top tip: slow down. Easy.

It’s important to note, of course, that winter tyres don’t give you carte blanche to get too Dukes of Hazzard about driving in bad conditions. Winter tyres help your car perform in the way you’d expect it to; you still have to drive responsibly for the road conditions. That might mean that the legal speed limit is still way too fast.

For anyone who does fit winter tyres, it’s a good idea to switch back to your usual rubber when temperatures start to increase. The softer compound in winter tyres will wear out much faster in normal conditions, so when spring finally springs it’s best to tuck them away for next winter.

We also think that, in reality, most drivers will be fine with normal all-weather tyres. They’re still pretty good if you don’t wear them down into slicks. But if you’re based in parts of the country where the temperature regularly dips into minus figures, or which suffers every winter from brutal rain and snow, then winter tyres are definitely something to consider.

And if you’re wondering why we’re getting so terminally dorky about tyres, you might imagine it’s because we’re about to tell you that fitting winter tyres will help to reduce your insurance premium.

So… will they?

No.

But life is about more than insurance. When it comes to driving, we’d suggest the priority is getting to your destination safely so you don’t need to think about insurance.

Speak to your broker – hi – about making any changes to your vehicle just to make sure your insurer will be OK with it, but for things like winter tyres most insurers recognise that it improves safety margins.

You don’t need us to tell you that avoiding accidents is a pretty tried-and-tested way of limiting any premium increases, which seems like as good a reason as any to make sure your vehicle has the right boots on. Like anything, doing what you can to minimise risk is the first priority – insurance should be a backup if the worst happens.

Find out more about our private clients service here or email Michael.Gregson@blackfordinsurance.com or Laura.Sims@blackfordinsurance.com for any specific help and advice.