Consumers Know Tire Brand Before Store Visit. J.D. Power study finds tires viewed as “commodity’. A
large proportion of shoppers will decide which store they
will purchase tires from as well as the specific tire brand
they will buy prior to the actual store visit, according to
findings of a J.D. Power and Associates Retail Tire Experience
Report. Most customers view tires as a commodity and
usually have not decided on a specific brand or model prior
to contacting a retailer. Thus, a tire store’s sales staff has a
unique opportunity to influence brand choice, according
to the report, which suggests that tire manufacturers can
increase their market shares by improving recommendation
rates among retail salespeople. The report compiles the
findings of more than 4,000 anonymous shoppers by
telephone at 2,100 different retail tire locations during
2008 and 2009. The report examined which tire brands
were recommended by salespeople at major tire retailers
and how effectively retailers handle telephone shoppers.
The study found that salespeople at manufacturer-affiliated
stores, such as Goodyear and Firestone outlets, typically
recommended that manufacturer’s brand. The study said
that Firestone-affiliated store salespeople, for example,
recommended the Firestone brand 49 percent of the time
and the Bridgestone brand 28 percent. At independent
tire dealerships, salespeople often recommended a brand
that was their personal preference, thus resulting in no
single brand dominating the recommendation rates at
most independents, according to the study, “Increasing the
recommendation rates at the independent tire retailers is
a key metric for manufacturers desiring to increase market
share,” according to J.O, Power. The reasons salespeople
recommend a particular tire brand vary considerably by
brand and manufacturer, according to the report. For
example, salespeople who recommend either Goodyear
or Michelin brands most often focus on performance and
handling. Michelin proponents were nearly twice as likely to
stress attributes related to quiet ride and gas mileage, while
Goodyear recommenders tended to focus on price, value
and special sales or promotions. Each retailer’s price quote
was influenced by the tire being recommended. J.D. Power
said this does not necessarily mean that the retailer charges a
higher price when the model of tire is held constant. But this
distinction is often lost on consumers who look at tires as a
commodity and call stores to compare prices.”.
Trial Law Firm Debuts Tire Defects Web Site. The plaintiffs’ product liability law firm of Greene
Broillet & Wheeler has launched a Web site designed
specifically to give consumers an overview of alleged
tire defects and tire safety issues. The Web site,
www.tire-defect-law.com, includes sections on tire
anatomy, tire tread separation, aged tires, valve stem
defects, Load Range E tires, tire informational
markings and tire recalls. It also includes a list of
tire-related cases Greene Broillet & Wheeler either
won in court or for which it negotiated settlements.
Greene Broillet & Wheeler claims to have conducted
successful product liability litigations against
most major tire makers. Christine D. Spagnoli,
a partner in the firm, is plaintiffs’ liaison counsel
for all product liability suits against Cooper Tire &
Rubber Co. in California, according to a press release. “Unfortunately, tire manufacturers and sellers don’t
provide adequate warning or instruction to protect
consumers and warn them of tire-related
dangers,” Ms. Spagnoli said, explaining why the finn
decided to establish a tire defects Web site. Several tire
manufacturing companies declined comment on the new
Web site, but a spokesman for the Rubber Manufacturers
Association said there was nothing surprising about it. “It’s natural for a lawyer to be entrepreneurial,” the
spokesman said. “This is not the first law firm to highlight
its tire industry-related positions, and it probably
won’t be the last. But their views on tires and the tire
industry should be seen in the perspective of their
personal financial interests.”
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TIA Urges Repeal of Tire Tariffs.The Tire
Industry Association (T1A) passed resolutions at
its 2009 annual meeting in Las Vegas calling for the
repeal of the recently imposed tariffs on Chinese
consumer tires and to support efforts to get proposed
federal tire fuel-efficiency legislation passed. In
its resolution, TIA said it will continue to lobby
Congress, the U.S. Trade Representative and the White
House to consider repealing the antidumping tariffs
imposed in September on imports of Chinesemade
passenger and light truck tires. TIA noted President
Barack Obama’s office has the option under the
provisions of the 421 ruling to review the president’s
decision within six months of its effective date. The
United Steelworkers (USW) union used the 421 protocol
in U.S.-Chinese trade treaties to appeal for quotas on
the number of tires imported from China. The Obama
administration eventually decided to impose tariffs of 35,
30 and 25 percent over three years. The second resolution
underscores TIA’s desire to administer the consumer
education portion of the tire fuel-efficiency rule that the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration put forth
this summer.
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RMA Forecasts Tire Shipments to Drop 13%. Sharp
decreases in the original equipment markets for both
passenger and commercial truck tires will cause U.S.
tire shipments to fall approximately 13 percent in 2009,
the Rubber Manufacturers Association (RMA) said in its
latest forecast. Total 2009 shipments will be an estimated
246 million tires, compared with 282 million in 2008
and 321 million in the peak year of 2000, the RMA said.
High unemployment and low consumer confidence have
combined to create hard times for both auto makers and
OE tire suppliers, according to the new report. However,
the consumer and commercial sectors seem poised for
a partial rebound in 2010, and the RMA projected a
6-percent increase in shipments to 260 million for next year. OE passenger tire shipments will plummet
nearly 43 percent in 2009 to 22 million units, but an
economic upturn should bring shipments in that sector
close to 30 million in 2020, the association said. OE
light truck tire shipments should fall 9 percent in 2009
to about 2.7 million and remain flat in 2010. In the OE
commercial truck tire market, the RMA said there will be
a 41-percent decline to 2.3 million units in 2009, but
pent-up demand should raise that figure by approximately
350,000 tires in 2010. Replacement passenger tire
shipments should total about 180 million in 2009, a
6-percent drop from 2008, but the RMA expects those
numbers to grow to about 184 million in 2010. In the
light truck tire replacement sector, shipments should total
about 26 million - an 11 percent decrease from 2008 - and
remain flat in 2010 because of weak economic forecasts
and the effects of tariffs on imports of Chinese passenger
and light truck tires, the RMA said. Replacement
commercial truck tire shipments should fall from 14.9
million last year to 12.6 million in 2009 and rise only to
approximately 13 million in 2010, the association said.
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California Gets the Lead Out. California
is banning lead wheel weights starting in January
2010, as per a bill signed into law by Gov. Arnold
Schwarzenegger. The bill, which was sponsored
by the Center for Environmental Health (CEH) and
Clean Water Action (CWA), forbids the manufacture,
sale and use of wheel weights in California containing
more than 0.1-percent lead starting January 1. It provides
for injunctive relief and civil or administrative penalties
of up to $2,000 per day against those who violate the
ban. All fines collected for violations of the ban will go
into the Hazardous Waste Control account within
California’s Department of Toxic Substances Control.
If any alternative used as a substitute to lead in wheel
weights is discovered to be a “chemical of concern”
under California law, the department would be required
to evaluate the substance to determine how best to limit
public exposure and reduce the hazard level, the bill states.
This bill represents the ultimate success of CEH and
CWA in their five-year effort to get lead weights banned
in California. There was already a de facto ban on lead
weights in the state.
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