Boston Area News

BOSTON (WBZ) ― Tires are one of the most important safety items on your car. So why are some people buying used tires, or not changing them when they buy a used car? Now there's a warning about a potential hazard we all need to know about.
 
Marchelle Robinson's family was planning a trip, but before they could leave, they need a tire for their van. Thinking they'd save a few dollars, they bought a used tire.

"It looked new, the tread was very good. You think everything is going to be ok," says Robinson. But it wasn't.

Just 3 days after buying the used tire, while traveling down a highway, the tire blew, and the van crashed. "My daughter was killed in the accident, my daughter was gone," says Robinson.

The used tire market is large. "It's estimated to be at least 30-million units sold in the United States alone each year," says Sean Kane who heads Safety Research and Strategies in Rehoboth.

After studying the used tire market extensively, that organization recently issued a warning. "My advice is real simple on used tires. Don't buy them," says Kane.

Brandon Bogart who runs In-Control Advanced Driver Training in Weymouth agrees. "If you get a used tire, you're rolling the dice," says Bogart.

In fact, he says good tires are the first priority for safety, and when you buy used tires you can't tell what might be going on beneath the surface.

"And that's what's scary," says Kane. "You can buy a tire that has all the appearances of a safe tire, yet the internals could be damaged significantly and you'd never know it," he adds.
 
Where do used tires that go back up for sale come from? Often from haulers who pick up the tires from auto shops. They're looking for tires with good treads. And even though many used tires are inspected before going on the market, some people say that's not nearly enough.

"They're moving down a conveyer belt, they're inspected for a very short period of time, and they're given a visual inspection only. And that visual inspection can't tell you always what's going on with the tire," according to Kane. And since there's virtually no regulations for used tire sales, safety advocates want the states to step in.

"So we know who's selling them, where they're being sold, and who is inspecting them," says Kane.

If you're buying a used car, they obviously have used tires. People we talked to said it's best to change them. "It's a small investment to get a new set of tires when you consider what's at stake," says Bogart.

WBZ-TV tried to talk about this with the trade group that represents many tire sellers.

But the Tire Industry Association responded with the following statement:

"The Tire Industry Association believes that properly maintained used tires are a valuable, cost-effective resource to an important segment of the motoring public. We also believe that used tires, when properly maintained, can make a positive contribution to highway safety by replacing severely worn tires. By definition, every tire on the road is a used tire and Tire Industry Association Automotive Tire Service (ATS) training has always stressed proper tire inspection for all tires. We are continuously working to make ATS training a part of every retail tire establishment."

For information about properly maintaining your tires for safety and better gas mileage, visit www.nhtsa.dot.gov

To see the report on used tire safety from Safety Research and Strategies, visit www.safetyresearch.net

Also refer to the following Web sites for more information:

In Control Advanced Driver Training: www.incontroladt.com

Tire Industry Association: www.tireindustry.org

(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)