Firestone To AGs: Recall Not A ‘Recall’
NASHVILLE, Tenn.--The Bridgestone/Firestone Inc. agreement with 49 state attorneys general in which additional suspect tires are being replaced at no charge is not a recall, the company insists. It’s a “customer satisfaction program.”
Firestone, under the direction of new Chief Executive Officer John T. Lampe--who had earlier appologized for the tire debacle--has lashed out at the attorneys general in New York and Connecticut, who apparently issued press releases stating that Firestone has agreed to expand its recall efforts concerning the tires listed in the Sept. 1 consumer advisory from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
“Those releases are inaccurate,” said company spokeswoman Christine Karbowiak, who insisted that the replacement process is not to be called a recall, but rather a “customer satisfaction program.”
“This action was not an expansion of the voluntary recall. The company continues to believe that the recall population is proper,” Karbowiak said
The additional SUV and light truck tires that are being replaced, but not “recalled,” include 24 models of various sizes, including further sizes of ATXs, as well as certain tires from the Firehawk, ATX 23 Degree, Widetrack Radial Baja, Wilderness AT and Wilderness HT lines.
In September NHTSA had asked Firestone to include the additional 1.4 million tires in the its earlier recall of 6.5 million, but company executives refused while saying Firestone would provide free inspection of the additional tires and provide free replacements if any customer was still concerned.
Firestone has since agreed to replace any of the additional tires-- regardless of wear and tear--although it said it would not accept any tires that had been removed from the vehicle.
“If a consumer prefers to replace those tires with a competitor’s tires, Bridgestone/Firestone will reimburse the consumer up to $140 per tire,” Karbowiak said.
“I want to urge all consumers to replace any consumer advisory tires as soon as possible,” said Jennifer M. Granholm, Michigan’s attorney general. “Your safety and your peace of mind are paramount.”
“We do not agree with her urging of consumers to replace those tires,” Karbowiak countered.
Most of the tires under NHTSA’s consumer advisory were sold as replacement equipment, but some were fitted at the factory to 1991 Chevy Blazers made by General Motors Corp., Nissan Motor Co. Ltd. 1991-94 pickup trucks and 1996-98 Ford Motor Co. F-150 pickups.
Firestone said fewer than half of the 1.4 million tires were still in use.
The 49 attorneys general also noted that Firestone had originally required customers to waive any legal rights to take part in the replacement program.
However, after negotiations, Firestone has now agreed to waive the waiver from the reimbursement forms, and to not to enforce any agreements consumers may have signed waiving their legal rights, the attorneys general said.
For more information about the recall or “customer satisfaction program,” contact:
www.bridgestone-firestone.com.
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