Dixon Motors staff are ambushing car parks in the north of England to win new aftersales business.

Armed with tread depth checkers, teams from each of the group's 14 franchises are targeting drivers running cars on dangerously worn tyres and sticking bright orange labels on illegal rubber.

Any tyres with less than the minimum tread depth are branded “bald” by a sticker reading: “Oi Baldy! Your tyres need checking!”

Michael Hunt, aftersales manager for Dixon Car Division, says the campaign is a light-hearted way of highlighting a serious issue. “Failing to replace bald tyres has several negative consequences. We hope that we can communicate this message while bringing a smile to people's faces at the same time,” Hunt says.

A survey by Dixon showed that almost 50 per cent of motorists are unaware they can be fined up to £2500 and three penalty points for each illegal tyre.