TIA
submits Comments on FTC's
"Tire Advertising and Labeling Guides." |
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sent VIA E-MAIL:
tireguides@ftc.gov
October 24,
2003
Secretary Federal Trade Commission
Room H-159
600 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20580
RE: Tire Guides, 16 CFR Part 228 – Comments
Dear Sir or Madam:
On August 25, 2003 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) published
a Proposed Rule regarding "Tire Advertising and Labeling
Guides" (Guides). The FTC has requested public comments about
the continuing need for its Guides as well as the costs and benefits
of the Guides. On behalf of the 4,000-plus members of the Tire
Industry Association (TIA) I am submitting comments.
TIA is an international association representing all segments
of the tire industry, including those that manufacture, repair,
recycle, sell, service or use new or retreaded tires, and also
those suppliers or individuals who furnish equipment, material
or services to the industry. TIA was formed by the July 2002 merger
of the International Tire & Rubber Association (ITRA) and
the Tire Association of North America (TANA).
TIA believes strongly that the Tire Advertising and Labeling Guides
need to remain in place but need to be updated to reflect today’s
tire marketplace more accurately. TIA is dedicated to more consumer
education at the point-of-sale and these guides provide important
information to the consumers and tire dealers alike.
Consumers rely on their tire dealers to find the proper tires
for their vehicles. Consumers tend to think they own their car,
not the tires on their car. In an in-house survey conducted by
TIA (then TANA) in 2001, we asked our members, "Are your
customers generally well-informed about the labeling on their
tires (load index values, maximum psi, etc.)?" The results
showed that our tire dealers believe that 15% of consumers are
well informed, 42% are somewhat informed and 43% are not informed.
In the same survey, 98% of TIA members said that their customers
rely on them for information to help make the proper tire purchase.
The
FTC asked: (1) Is there a continuing need for the Tire Guides?
(a) What benefits have the Guides provided to purchasers of the
products affected by the Guides? (b) Have the Guides imposed costs
on purchasers? (c) How prevalent and widespread is voluntary compliance
with the Guides? (d) Have other federal regulatory initiatives
rendered the Guides unnecessary?
TIA strongly
urges the FTC to leave the Guides in place. The benefit of the
Guides to the consumer is protection from unscrupulous business
owners and more readily available information on tire labels when
making a purchase. Consumers do not always understand tire information
and rely heavily on their tire dealers to help them make the right
choice. TIA is committed to more consumer education efforts at
the point-of-sale regarding all tire safety and maintenance issues.
The costs of compliance with the Guides for a tire dealer would
be minimal. Compliance with the Guides is high although it may
be "involuntary" compliance. Many TIA tire dealers were
aware, albeit vaguely, of these Guides. The Guides have been in
place so long that most of the guidelines have become standard
business practice in the industry without the realization it is
because of the Guides. TIA does not believe any other regulations
make the Guides unnecessary.
(2)
What changes, if any, should be made to the Guides to increase
the benefits of the Guides to purchasers? (a) How would these
changes affect the costs the Guides impose on firms following
their suggestions? (b) How would these changes affect the benefits
to purchasers?
The Guides
need to be updated to reflect today’s tire industry. Here
are TIA’s recommended changes:
• Uniform
Tire Quality Grading (UTQG) needs to be addressed. In the FTC
Tire Advertising and Labeling Guides 16 CFR 228.2, the Guides
say, "There exists today no industry-wide, government or
other accepted system of quality standards or grading of industry
products." Today this is untrue with the 1978 Uniform Tire
Quality Grading (UTQG) system (49 CFR 575.104). UTQG is designed
to help a consumer know which tire has better treadwear, traction
and temperature compared to other tires. While the test is meant
to be a tool for consumers, tire industry officials believe
that UTQG becomes very subjective when going from brand to brand.
Regardless of whether that is the view or not, UTQG needs to
be included in the Guides to insure the regulations are current.
We would recommend that the FTC consider making sure that if
UTQG ratings are used in advertising, that the size and type
(i.e. 205/75R15 all-season tread design, tubeless tire) of the
tire for which the UTQG rating is being compared is included.
• Radial tires have taken over the marketplace so references
to bias ply tires should be changed to reflect the ratio. According
to Modern Tire Dealer Magazine’s 2003 Facts Issue, 99.6%
of replacement passenger tires were radial and make up 100%
of the Original Equipment (OE) passenger market in 2002. In
the light truck arena, 3.3% of replacement tires were bias ply
and 1.2% of the OE light truck tire market was bias ply.
• Although bias ply tires are a small part of the market,
the FTC should retain sections 228.6-7 regarding "Ply count,
plies and ply rating" and "cord materials." Any
information available to consumers and dealers is useful information
when choosing a tire. Terminology used within the Guides may
need to be updated.
• "Tube-type" tires are almost extinct
• "Trade-ins" or "Take-offs" are usually
disposed of in today’s litigious society. However, the
Guides need to stay in place for those few businesses that still
might sell those "slightly used" tires.
• Blemished tires are a small part of the market mainly
because of liability issues. Again, TIA recommends that the
Guides stay in place for those few businesses that still sell
them.
• The FTC should address Internet and phone sales in their
examples as those two types of sales have dramatically increased
during the last decade.
These changes
will not make a huge difference to consumers. They will simply
update the Guides to reflect today’s market. Making more
information available that is up-to-date will help tire dealers
do their job at the point-of-sale more efficiently.
(3)
What significant burdens or costs, including costs of compliance,
have the Guides imposed on firms following their suggestions?
(a) Have the Guides provided benefits to such firms? If so, what
benefits?
While TIA
has not studied the costs of these Guides we do not believe the
Guides impose any major costs on the tire industry. The benefit
of the Guides is making sure all tire businesses are on the same
playing field when dealing with consumers and giving the consumers
the information they need when making a tire purchase.
(4)
What changes, if any, should be made to the Guides to reduce the
burdens or costs imposed on firms following their suggestions?
(a) How would these changes affect the benefits provided by the
Guides?
TIA does not
feel the Guides impose any burdens or costs to our membership.
(5)
Do the Guides overlap or conflict with other federal, state, or
local laws or regulations? (a) To what extent has/will NHTSA tire
safety regulations and tire quality grading standards regulations
[49 CFR 567, 571, 574, 575, and 597] including those required
by the Transportation Recall Enhancement, Accountability, and
Documentation (TREAD) Act of 2000 , Pub. L. 106 - 414 supersede
the need for this Guide or parts of this Guide?
The FTC may
want to reference the TREAD Act (particularly the Tire Labeling
regulation published in the Federal Register on November 18, 2002
which refers to tire sidewall labeling information and take the
place of the Guides language), other federal laws, and state laws
that overlap information in the Guides where the laws have changed.
TIA believes the Guides could refer to other regulations where
the current rules can be found, or delete the provisions altogether.
(b)
To what extent has the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, 15 U.S.C. 2301
et seq., and regulations promulgated pursuant to the Act, found
at 16 CFR Parts 700-703 and Part 239, superseded the need for
the Guides or parts of the Guides?
TIA does not
believe there is a conflict with the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act
and the current Guides.
(c)
Have state consumer protection laws or regulations governing tires,
tire safety, tire price advertising, tire disposal, retreading,
or snow tires affected the need for the Guides or parts of the
Guides?
TIA is not
aware of any state consumer protection laws or regulations that
would affect the need for the Guides.
(6)
Since 1968 when the main provisions of the Guides were issued,
what effects, if any, have the following changes in relevant technology
or economic conditions had on the Guides: (a) The recent increased
sales of pickup trucks, sport utility vehicles, and similar new
vehicles, the tires of which may not be covered by the Guides?
The immergence
of the SUV in the marketplace has brought in a wide variety of
tires as well. These tires were not around when the guides were
first written. In 16 CFR 228.0 the Tire Guides state, "As
used in this part, the terms Industry Product or Product shall
mean pneumatic tires for use on passenger automobiles, station
wagons and similar vehicles, or the materials used therin…."
TIA believes this beginning statement to §228.0 can be updated
to include Sport Utility Vehicles, mini-vans and light trucks
to better reflect the vehicles on the roads today. Station wagons,
while still available, have been replaced by mini-vans and SUVs.
(b)
The shift to radial tires (as opposed to the bias-ply tires popular
when the Guides were issued) in today’s tire market?
The shift
to radial tires has had a huge impact on the tire industry over
the last three decades. Radial tires last longer than bias ply
tires. The Guides need to have language that reflects that radials
are now the dominant tires in the market. This change has no effect
on the public, as it is something consumers have been living with
for years.
(c)
Changes in tire distribution or sales, including use of E-mail,
the Internet, Internet advertising or CD ROM advertising.
The tire industry
has seen much change in the last decade with use of the Internet
and phone sales. The FTC should update their guides to cover these
new technological tools and make sure they are covered under the
guides and all forms of tire sales are on a level playing field.
(d)
The declining market for retreaded passenger car tires.
While it is
true that the passenger retread market has shrunk, there are still
users of such tires. (The U.S. Postal Service is one example.)
The retread section of the Guides (16 CFR 228.9) addresses the
needs of consumers that are purchasing retreaded tires. TIA does
not believe that section needs to be updated.
(7)
Are there any abuses occurring in the distribution, promotion,
sale or manufacture of tires that are not addressed by the Guides?
If so, what mechanisms should be explored to address such abuses
(e.g., consumer education, industry self-regulation, Guide amendment)?
TIA knows
of no abuses in the distribution, sale or manufacture of tires.
TIA looks
forward to working with the FTC on these important guides and
would be happy to assist as you move forward in this process.
If you have any questions about our comments please call Becky
MacDicken at 703/642-3162.
Respectfully submitted,
Becky MacDicken
Director of Government Affairs
Tire Industry Association
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