When Barry Steinberg talks, people listen. Or at least they should.
Steinberg, owner of Direct Tire & Auto Service in Watertown, Mass., wanted his fellow dealers to be aware that there is a "very sophisticated" tire scam going on out of Canada. He says the company is Canstruct Inc., and it has a Champlain, N.Y., address.
"They look great on D&B and their website, but they do not exist."
Steinberg says they order tires, send a trucking company to pick them up -- and are gone.
"The FBI in Buffalo, N.Y., is on this scam, and they have gotten hundreds of companies, not all tire dealers."
If you have information on the scam, you can call (518) 465-7551. You also can talk with Steinberg at (617) 710-1000.
Known for his innovative business practices, Steinberg was Modern Tire Dealer's first Tire Dealer of the Year in 1993. He was elected into the New England Tire and Service Association Hall of Fame in 2011.
(To read the Tire Dealer of the Year story about Steinberg, written by former MTD Editor Lloyd Stoyer, click here.)
