Update: Details of Tire Inspection and Replacement Program
14 September 2000
Update: Details of Tire Inspection and Replacement ProgramNASHVILLE, Tenn., Sept. 13 On Sept. 12, 2000, John Lampe, Executive Vice President of Bridgestone/Firestone, Inc. (BFS), announced the company is providing free inspections at company-owned stores and authorized retailers for any consumers who may be concerned about tires covered in the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) Consumer Advisory dated September 1. In addition, Lampe said, the company is prepared to replace the tires covered by the Advisory if a customer is concerned, using competitors' products if necessary. If a customer chooses to visit a competitor's location for replacement tires, BFS will reimburse the customer, with proper documentation, up to $140 per tire, based on actual costs for competitive products installed at non-BFS retailers. The reimbursement amount will cover the tire purchase, mounting, balancing, valve stems, taxes and disposal fees as required by law. In order to obtain reimbursement for the competitors' replacement tires, the customer should return the old tires to any authorized participating BFS retailer and obtain a reimbursement form. The completed form, along with the original receipt for the returned tires, should be mailed to the address shown on the form. Forms are also available on the web at http://www.firestone.com . This inspection and replacement program is being implemented as a customer satisfaction program to address consumer concerns as a result of the September 1, 2000 NHTSA Consumer Advisory. It is not a recall and is completely separate from the recall of the P235/75R15 Radial ATX and ATX II tires produced in North America and the same size Wilderness AT tires produced in the Decatur IL factory. The maximum reimbursement for recalled tires remains at up to $100 per tire. The difference in reimbursement rate is due to the range and sizes of the tires in the NHTSA Consumer Advisory compared to those covered by the recall.