Revealed: The eco-vandals waging war on 4x4s across the UK in bid to make it ‘impossible to own an SUV’ – as they deflate tyres on 60 vehicles in ‘retaliation’ for Wimbledon school deaths

• The group says even electric and hybrid sports utility vehicles are ‘fair game’ 

They used the death of two young girls in a crash at a school as justification for damaging tyres on at least 60 vehicles at a dealership.

But the climate vigilante group which targeted Jaguar Exeter in Devon on Sunday night vow to continue their ruthless vandalism, with even electric and hybrid sports utility vehicles (SUVs) described as ‘fair game’.

For more than a year now, the ‘Tyre Extinguishers’ have snuck out into the dead of night in affluent areas of the country and deflated the tyres of ‘gas-guzzling’ 4x4s including Range Rovers, Mazdas and Volkswagens.

In pursuit of their goal of ‘making it impossible to own an SUV in the world’s urban areas’, they hit vehicle owners in major British cities including London, Edinburgh, Manchester, Birmingham and Bristol, but have also taken their activism around the globe, striking in France, Germany and the United States.

Their most recent stunt represented a significant escalation for the eco-group, however, by using a drill to inflict tangible damage on the tyres, rather than merely deflating them.

Their calling card left at the scene of their most recent attack was a leaflet featuring an image of the Land Rover which crashed through a fence and into The Study Prep School in Wimbledon on July 6, killing eight-year-old pupils Nuria Sajjad and Selena Lau. Alongside the image was a quote from the boss of Citroen, describing SUV drivers as ‘terrorists’

The group demands to see bans on SUVs in urban areas, pollution levies to tax SUVs out of existence, and massive investment in free, comprehensive public transport.

Tales of woe: The hard-hit SUV owners whose 4x4s have been targeted by tyre-slashing zealots 

Among the hardest hit were those in Brighton. Boasting not just the country’s only Green MP but a Green council to boot, the city was last year voted the UK’s most eco-friendly. So imagine the shock of residents living in one of its most middle-class suburbs when they awoke on Tuesday morning to discover that they, of all people, had been branded enemies of the environment.

Katie Wood, who found that three tyres on her Kia Sportage had been let down, was one of them.

An educational psychologist, she was two hours late for work as she tracked down a portable pump and then headed to a garage to top up her tyres.

‘I’d use public transport if I could but, because I work in a variety of different locations, I need a car to travel,’ said the 41-year-old.

‘My car can in no way be described as a ‘Chelsea Tractor’. It has a relatively small engine and its emissions are low.’ 

She added: ‘The tactics used on this occasion are wrong. Everyone wants to help reduce climate change and are doing what they can but in order to effect real change they should be winning hearts and minds.’

Nearby, Rob Derkin was equally outraged at being singled out. When he left to take his daughter to college he spotted that three tyres on his Volkswagen T-Roc were flat.

Unscrewing the valve caps, he discovered telltale dried legumes within. ‘It’s ridiculous that they targeted this car because it has a 1-litre engine and low emissions,’ the 58-year-old music composer said. ‘I specifically chose it because of its low emissions.

‘All this campaign serves to do is make people angry and reinforces the image of activists. It reeks of student idealism – it’s so Brighton that a lentil was involved.’

He added: ‘If they’re going to continue with this campaign then they need to brush up on what cars have high emissions and which ones to avoid because at the moment they are targeting the wrong people.’

It was a point echoed by Neil Longuet-Higgins, 61, who was moving house on Tuesday morning and spotted one of the tyres on his Porsche Cayenne was flat as he went to meet the removals van. The car is a hybrid, meaning it can travel around 20 miles on battery power alone.

‘The car I had before was a diesel but I changed it and because I live and work around Brighton I only really use the electric element of the car,’ he said.

The disruption caused by the flat tyre ended up costing him more than £500. Driving to two garages — in vain — to find an air pump caused damage to the tyre, forcing him to pay £250 for a replacement. Because of the delay, he also had to pay the removal firm for an extra two hours of their time.

SUVs feature elements of standard cars but are larger and have off-road capabilities such as high ground clearance.

Petrol and diesel-powered models are generally less fuel efficient than cars.

Their calling card left at the scene of their most recent attack was a leaflet featuring an image of the Land Rover which crashed through a fence and into The Study Prep School in Wimbledon on July 6, killing eight-year-old pupils Nuria Sajjad and Selena Lau.

Alongside the image was a quote from the boss of Citroen, describing SUV drivers as ‘terrorists’.

Vincent Cobee claimed earlier this year that the rise of electric cars will ‘kill off’ huge SUVs, because they’re too heavy when you add a battery. 

He added: ‘If you live in a big city, five years ago if you drop off your kids with a big SUV you’re a man. Now, if you do this, you’re a ‘terrorist’.’

A source at Land Rover told the Mail last night it was ‘distasteful’ to link the tragedy to its vehicles.

Precisely who is behind the shadowy group, which claims to be leaderless, remains unclear. 

But their decision to take direct action that affects the lives of ordinary members of the public mimics the tactics of Just Stop Oil, Extinction Rebellion (XR) and Insulate Britain, whose protests have gridlocked cities and roads in recent years.

While the Tyre Extinguishers deny they are affiliated to any other organisation, when it set up a Twitter account last summer, the very first group it followed was XR. 

Last year, the group created a bizarre ‘European cup competition’ – with protesters setting up a ‘leader board’ of attacks, with activists in Paris claiming they are challenging Bristol and Brighton for the title of ‘most extinguished city’.

After boasting of ‘disarming’ more than 120 vehicles in just one night, activists in France issued a rallying cry.

They wrote on Twitter: ‘Forget the Champions League, take part in the Extinguishers Cup.

‘Finally a Parisian club that is successful in a European competition!’

Some of the SUVs that have had their tyres let down also include electric and hybrids, as the group considers them both unsafe in urban areas, dramatically stating that ‘a child killed by a massive SUV doesn’t care if it’s electric or not.’

The vigilantes also claim that there are ‘not enough rare earth metals’ to build electric and hybird cars to replace conventional cars with them, and that ‘the danger to other road users still stands’.

Iren Brown from Brighton, had to cancel a hospital appointment after her and her husband Nick woke up to find all four tyres on the family’s part-electric Toyota Rav 4 had been deflated by activists.

Mrs Brown, 43, said last year: ‘The Toyota is a hybrid electric car which we bought because we were being mindful of the environmental impact our previous diesel car was having. But these activists have not taken that into consideration. I’m so angry because everyone is behind their cause but their tactics are indiscriminate and scattershot.’

The mother-of-two, a kitchen designer, added: ‘Nick is quite a serious diabetic and we may have need to access a vehicle in an emergency. Their actions could have been dangerous.’

Globally, the number of SUVs has increased from less than 50 million in 2010 to around 320 million last year – equivalent to the total car fleet of Europe. 

Because of their size, on average, SUVs consume around a quarter more energy than medium-sized cars.

A 2019 study by the International Energy Agency found that they rank among the top contributors to energy-related carbon dioxide emissions growth over the past decade – cancelling out the reductions from people switching to electric cars. 

Because of their size, they are also said to be more dangerous when involved in an accident.

Vehicles at the Jaguar Exeter dealership on Matford Way, owned by Vertu Motors

SUVs are generally less fuel efficient, and are said to emit 25 per cent more carbon dioxide than a medium-sized car

The vigilantes make no exception for electric or hybrid SUVs, insisting that they still pollute and cause congestion

The campaign group posted video footage of vigilantes appearing to deflate tyres using drills at Jaguar Exeter

The group as so far slashed tyres on thousands of vehicles across the UK, and aims to ‘make it impossible’ to drive an SUV in urban areas

Yesterday, Tyre Extinguishers posted a video online appearing to show a member drilling tyres at the Land Rover dealership in Devon.

It said in a statement: ‘Tyre Extinguishers Takes Responsibility for Land Rover Dealership Tyre Destruction.

‘In response to the tragic incident that occurred on Thursday 6th July, where a Land Rover SUV driver crashed into 15 people killing two innocent girls on the Study Preparatory School grounds. Tyre Extinguishers destroyed all the tyres on at least 60 vehicles at Jaguar Exeter, Matford Way.

‘SUVs are 8 times more likely to kill children in crashes, than smaller cars.

‘The members of Tyre Extinguishers express their deepest condolences to the families and loved ones of the two young girls who lost their lives in the heart-wrenching killing. They also wish swift recovery to the other 15 victims.

‘This act of retaliation, is intended as a peaceful and non-violent demonstration to draw attention to the presence of grossly inappropriate private vehicles in our towns and cities.

‘The crash took place on the 6th July has left the community devastated and mourning. Tyre Extinguishers firmly believes that their action is a necessary escalation to try and stop these vehicles from wrecking further lives and continuing to push the worsening climate crisis of the cliff edge.

‘The group hopes that this action will serve as a wake-up call for all stakeholders to unite in their efforts to prevent future tragedies and make our roads safer for everyone.’

A member of Tyre Extinguishers, named only as ‘Joe’ said: ‘Our intention is not to incite violence or harm but rather to catalyse change and ensure a safer environment for everyone.

‘We envision a world with far fewer privately owned vehicles and that every driver takes their responsibility seriously, putting safety first and showing empathy towards fellow road users’.

The activists say they are retaliating on behalf of Selena Lau and Nuria Sajjad, who were both killed when a Land Rover crashed into their school in Wimbledon

This photo shows an activist working under the cover of darkness and with their face obscured

The Tyre Extinguishers have deflated the tyres of more than 2,000 SUVs

Another called ‘Eric’ said: ‘We urge our politicians to legislate for more robust law enforcement and government policy, we have to rein in our car brained culture where people are being killed daily by drivers’.

A spokesman for Jaguar Land Rover UK said: ‘We have been made aware that our Exeter site has been the subject of criminal acts of vandalism. We are supporting the police with its investigation.’

A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said the force was ‘aware of criminal damage having occurred’ and ‘inquiries continue’.

The driver of the car involved in the school crash – a 46-year-old woman from Wimbledon – was arrested at the scene on suspicion of causing death by dangerous driving.

She was bailed pending further inquiries.

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