Once it has been established, you may want to write it in procedure form and distribute it to every employee
involved. It’s also an excellent idea to publicize it. Place a statement of your complaint handling system conspicuously
in your store as a constant reminder to the consumer and your employees that you intend to uphold your commitments.
When a consumer asks you to examine a tire for a warranty claim:
ALWAYS DEMOUNT THE TIRE.
Have a special tire inspection station, located in a quiet, well-lit area, away from the sales floor of the dealership.
Your inspection station should include a tire spreader and a good shop light.
Select a spot on the tread and mark it with a tire crayon. This will be your starting point for inspection. Rolling the
tire toward you, carefully examine the tread, marking any irregularities you may see, until you have worked your
way back around to the crayon mark. Next, inspect each sidewall in the same careful manner, again marking any
abnormalities. Do the same thing with the bead areas and the inside of the tire. To protect your hands, use a shop
rag or a glove to “feel” the inner liner. Sometimes, a puncturing object you cannot see may “snag” the fabric of a
shop rag, revealing the location of a foreign object. The shop rag also prevents your hands and fingers from being
“snagged” as well. Do not make any comments or decisions about the condition of the tire until you have completed
the inspection.
Explaining your findings:
If the tire condition is covered by the warranty.
Explain the warranty and if necessary show the consumer the warranty booklet that describes how the replacement
charge will be determined. In the case of a
pro rata
charge, explain that the credit is based on the unused
percentage of the original tread, and that the charge is for the percentage used. The procedures for calculating
adjustments begin on page 10 of this manual.
If the tire condition is not covered by the warranty:
Begin by explaining that the warranty covers those things which the manufacturer can control, i.e., the workmanship
and materials that go into making the tire. It does not cover those things which the manufacturer cannot control,
such as punctures, impact damage, underinflation/overinflation, etc. Again, you may want to show the consumer
the section of the warranty brochure that addresses, “What is Not Covered.” Whenever possible, show the
consumer the “evidence” on the tire that indicates what caused the damage. Do not blame the consumer for the
damage. (See “Good ways to present bad news.”)
In some cases, even when a tire is not warrantable, you may wish to offer a “goodwill” concession. Guidelines for
Goodwill are presented on page 9 of this manual.
If you cannot determine what caused the tire to come out of service...
There will be times when, based on your examination alone, you cannot determine why a tire came out of service.
On these occasions, it is sometimes helpful to examine the other tires on the vehicle. For instance, a tire that has
been run severely underinflated is presented to you in shreds. You perform a thorough, professional tire
inspection, yet there is not enough “evidence” left on the tire to tell you what caused it to slowly lose air. Before you
say anything to the consumer, ask to inspect the vehicle. The other tires on the vehicle may provide some clues.
By checking the air pressures of the other tires, you may find that the remaining tires show evidence of under-
inflation, punctures or plug repairs. Since all 4 tires have been in the same place (that is, on the vehicle) you now
have some evidence that can explain what may have happened to the tire that was destroyed. Furthermore, you
may also find that the consumer really needs two or three or even four tires and not just a replacement for the one
tire that became unserviceable. If the other tires also exhibit evidence of impact or puncture damage, you have a
strong argument for selling the consumer your dealership’s road hazard protection plan, if you offer one.
HOW TO INSPECT A TIRE
7
THE MNA CONSUMER CARE
PHILOSOPHY . . .
(CONT’D)