OT: Tire damage certificates

[sevencyclist]

Looking at getting new tires for car. Last time we got new tires, my wife promptly ran up against a curb hard and we neede to get one single new tire. However, have not had tire failure issues since.

The tire stores usually have tire replacement certificates that you can purchase for 15% of tire cost, so adds up to be roughly 50% of one tire for a set of four. Are those worthwhile? Meaning, do the vendor usually honor the replacement without hassel. Or do they find issues to avoid coverage, so renders the certificate pretty useless?

[Bruce K]

Like any other insurance it's a roll of the dice and hoping that you don't need it

We took it for the run flats on our wagon and ended up getting 4 tires over the life of the warranty due to various road hazards

Other than those we've very rarely had flats

Good luck

BK

[Ken Robb]

The value depends somewhat on where you woiuld have to go to get a replacement tire. If you have a flat in Montana and you have to go to a tire store in California for a replacement you're hosed. Many flats can be plugged for little or no cost. I doubt that you would get a replacement tire if it was deemed repairable. My bottom line is to self-insure tires.

[AngryScientist]

same old cardinal rule applies here: dont insure against a risk you can afford to absorb.

i just switched jobs, but previously i drove an absurd amount of miles per year as part of my commute. never replaced a tire, a few $3 plugs here and there (i have the kit, plug nail/screw holes myself), but never needed to replace a tire completely, and i ride UHPS (ultra high performance summer) tires most of the year....

[djg21]

I buy all my tires at Tirerack.com and use one of its recommended installers. The installer I use actually comes to my home. After shipping and installation, I still came out $70 less per tire than my local shop wanted to charge me before installation. My car requires that tires be changed in sets so this was a decent amount of money. It's rare that a tire cannot be repaired (e.g., sidewall damage). And insurance can add a lot to the price of the tires. Whether the additional price is worth the peace of mind is really a judgment call that you need to assess.

[bikinchris]

Like any other insurance it's a roll of the dice and hoping that you don't need it

We took it for the run flats on our wagon and ended up getting 4 tires over the life of the warranty due to various road hazards

Other than those we've very rarely had flats

Good luck

BK

I understand what you are saying, but it works the other way around. The company issuing the insurance hopes you don't need to use it. YOU on the other hand are betting that you will need the item replaced for free. If the price is right (read cheap enough), or the item is just too expensive to replace (like an engine and or transmission), then buy the policy.
Tires? I don't usually buy it.

[1centaur]

By definition, all insurance is priced against the buyer's interests by actuaries who've studied the statistics and figure out a price that will make a profit. The more predictable and more competitive the product (life insurance), the "fairer" the insurance price is. Product insurance (like extended warranties) are extremely uncompetitive - the buyer makes no price comparisons, just takes it or leaves it - so it's extremely profitable (that profit often shared with the seller, not just the insurer, which incentivizes them to push it).

So, on a purely arithmetic basis, it's stupid to take tire insurance - highly likely to be a money loser for the buyer.

BUT, there's always that psychic income that's tough to price and hard to value. That's a personal; choice - the feeling of being covered has more value to some than others. And then there's the rare case where the insurance pricing has not caught up with reality and it's cheap - run flats for 20 inch wheels on BMW 5-series in the last couple of years, that flat at such a rate (and damage rims due to lack of sidewall height) that it would be crazy NOT to take the insurance. Finally, actuaries don't know the roads you drive. If it's 50 mph with gaping sharp potholes and strewn glass, then maybe the odds favor you, but the time sink of replacement says to take a different route or drive really tough tires.

[sevencyclist]

Thanks for the analysis. I had never bough tire insurance in the past, but now affected by the recency of the last set of tires needing replacement due to a curb damage that was not expected.

Usually there's a discount to buy a set of 4 tires (eg buy 4 for price of 3), but when going for the replacement, the one tire price was not discounted, and I ended up paying three times of what I would have paid for the certificate. So assuming if I need tire warranty once every three sets, I would make off even.

As for tire damage needing replacement rather than simple repairs, it has happened to me twice. Once was this curb episode, and the other time was a nail on the sidewall rather than the tread, so I ended up having to replace two tires due to uneven wear compared to the tire from the other side with one new one old. With the set of tires I have had, I guess the number works out better not to take the certificate. Thanks.