Have you replaced your vehicles tires recently…and feel good about your family’s safety because the tires are “new”? The National Transportation Safety Board completed a year long investigation in October 2015 on the status quo of our national recall system for car tires. Bottom line:
“Based on the work we did, that system’s not working. It’s completely broken.” ~ Rob Molloy – NTSB
What can you do to learn whether your tires have been Recalled?
- Consumer Awareness – is an effective first step. Did you know that you need to register your tires with the manufacturer in order to receive recall notices?
- Check the Age of Your Tires – Ford, GM and Chrysler all recommend that tires more than six years old be replaced, regardless of how much they have been used. Watch this video:
What can the NTSB do better to make it easier for consumers to tell if they tires are under recall??
- Tire Identification Number (TIN) lookup system implemented by manufacturers on their websites. Each tire already has its own TIN imprinted on the side of the tire.
- Newer Technology – the tires themselves could in form of embedded chips or scan-able codes to help auto shops quickly identify tires, the NTSB said, and update customer contact forms to ensure consumers get recall notices when they go out.