New Tires - Road Hazard Protection?

[psimon]

It's time to buy tires... trying to decide whether to get the Road Hazard Protection (i.e. tire insurance) being offered....

Thoughts?

---Paul in Southern NJ

 

[Gumbo4x4]

I look for brands that come with road hazard free rather than paying the dealer to warranty tires that the manufacturer won't back.

 

[HM]

I had two tires split on me last year and the place I get work done figures out how much more wear they are supposed to get (expected mileage minus actual mileage) and discounts the new pair I bought by the amount of use I should have still gotten. It's some sort of warranty offered by the manufacturer, I think.

 

[StephMK]

We don't normally get many warranties. Last year when I needed new tires, a national chain shop price matched a sale for me and included a warranty in the price. A month later across the country, I blew 2 tires on a busy highway. It cost $80 total to replace both tires and luckily they blew within 3 miles of that chain. Firestone and AAA made a rough day much easier!

I know that was a freak event but I will definitely think about purchasing a warranty again mainly because we do take long road trips. If you are not going anywhere but local, I would weigh the warranty cost vs. having to buy a new tire if something goes wrong.

 

[bdcp]

More than worth it. DH had one tire replaced this year for almost free. I think it cost us less than $50 for a $200 tire that was only about a year old. It's cheap protection.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

In 30 yrs of driving, I've never had a blow out or had a tire become damaged or defective. Only a couple flat tires in all of those years which usually was due to driving over a nail or something sharp.
I do have AAA just in case but in the off chance my tires should be defective, I'm ok with the manufacturer's warranty.

Maybe I'd feel differently if we took long car trips. We usually fly if it's more than a 6 hour drive.

 

[Sandy61]

We get a lot of nails in our tires. I have no idea why the roads around here have so many nails. We get a lot of free fixes. If the tire is newer and we need a new tire it is free. If the tire is older and we need a new tire we get the new one for a prorated price. For us it is a great deal. If you have never had a flat tire, then I don't know if it would be worth it.

 

[mdsd8700]

We get a lot of nails in our tires. I have no idea why the roads around here have so many nails. We get a lot of free fixes. If the tire is newer and we need a new tire it is free. If the tire is older and we need a new tire we get the new one for a prorated price. For us it is a great deal. If you have never had a flat tire, then I don't know if it would be worth it.

This has also been the case for us. The last time we had a slow leak in the tire, but I am not sure why or what from. Road Hazard has always worked in our favor so much so that we always get it.

 

[MillauFr]

Complete waste of money in my opinion. I have gotten 2 nails in my tires in 25 years of driving but it cost me nothing to get them fixed. Even without the insurance. I only buy insurance to protect against catastrophic losses. Not inconveniences.

 

[manning]

I got tires at Costco and it was included.

 

[psimon]

Complete waste of money in my opinion. I have gotten 2 nails in my tires in 25 years of driving but it cost me nothing to get them fixed. Even without the insurance. I only buy insurance to protect against catastrophic losses. Not inconveniences.

I'm curious how you could get nail holes patched for nothing..... I don't know anywhere that will do it for gratis. What's your secret?

---Paul in Southern NJ

 

[FairestOfThemAll37]

I'm curious how you could get nail holes patched for nothing..... I don't know anywhere that will do it for gratis. What's your secret? ---Paul in Southern NJ

Discount Tire will patch tires for free. They'll also inspect your tires and fill them up for free. They do this with the hopes that you'll come to them when it's time to buy new tires.

 

[psimon]

Discount Tire will patch tires for free. They'll also inspect your tires and fill them up for free. They do this with the hopes that you'll come to them when it's time to buy new tires.

That explains why I don't know about them... they aren't located in the Northeast!

Thanks....

---Paul in Southern NJ

 

[lucyem]

In 25 years of driving I have had two flats. AAA changed both. One was covered under warranty and was replaced. The second I had to pay like $15 to have the hole plugged. In my mind AAA has repeatedly paid for itself. I don't see the need for a road hazard protection plan on the tires. Now if this was a more common occurrence I would probably change my mind.

 

[disneymagicgirl]

It's included at Costco and sams. Those are the only 2 places I ever buy tires.

 

[Belle & Ariel]

We have had 3 homes built over the years and had many many nails. As the subdivisions are built, nails are everywhere!
For us it is well worth it--we go to Walmart and pay about $10 per tire for the protection plan.
I have noticed in recent years their prorating seems very low--maybe we get about $30 on a $100 plus tire that is less than a year old, so maybe we need to rethink its value at Walmart.

 

[Lewisc]

I buy my tires at COSTCO, road hazard is included. Frequently road hazard coverage includes tire rotation and balancing. That service, if included, might justify the purchase. It depends on how you service your vehicle.

I otherwise agree with the PP, in general service contracts are a bad deal.

 

[ellochka]

"In short, road hazard warranties are a waste of money. Don't insure that which you can afford to replace.

Numbers Game and Slim Chances:
Like all insurance, tire insurance plans are a numbers game. However, this is a game you have a 98% chance of losing. Insider statistics show that the percentage of claims paid out by providers is as low a 2%."

http://www.streetdirectory.com/trav...ths_and_facts_about_road_hazard_policies.html

 

[wizardman]

I buy my tires from BJ's and it's already included also. Even if it wasn't, I would still buy it.

 

[MillauFr]

I buy my tires from BJ's and it's already included also. Even if it wasn't, I would still buy it.

Why would you buy the coverage? Even lottery tickets are a better deal than most service plans.