Jamie Ward, president at Tire Discounters Inc., has issued a challenge to fellow tire dealers all over the country. Ward, who is also a member of the board of the Ohio Tire & Automotive Association (OTAA), wants to partner with other tire dealers and automotive retailers to remove unsafe used tires from America's roads.
He's worked with the OTAA for several years on the matter, and the group's efforts are paying off. On July 1, 2019, an Ohio bill prohibiting the installation of unsafe used tires will go into effect. It defines unsafe as anything under 2/32-inch tread depth.
“This bill will prevent countless injuries and fatalities caused by unsafe tires, other states should follow Ohio’s lead to prohibit the sale and installation of unsafe used tires and I invite all tire retailers to support this cause” says Ward.
Fellow tire dealer Joe Flynn of Flynn's Tire Group is president of OTAA and says, “The OTAA was successful in working with the Ohio legislature because we had tremendous support from our retail partners. To further our mission to remove unsafe used tires from the nation’s roads we need more retailers to lead the charge in their home states”.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) says tires at 2/32” are three times more likely to be involved in a crash than tires with sufficient tread depth. NHTSA crash statistics indicate that about 200 fatalities and 6,000 injuries are attributed to tire-related causes annually.
“I recognize that there is a market for used tires, however, there’s a line that should be drawn to distinguish good used tires versus used tires that are unsafe," says Ward. "We successfully drew that line with law in Ohio and we need to join as an industry to replicate similar legislation across the country."
