By Vlad
To whom it may concern
On December 12, 2010 at 1.40 pm my girlfriend and I went into Canadian Tire on 6670 Meadowvale Town Centre Circle, Mississauga, ON to install previously purchased winter tires. I have been quoted $199.99 ($50 per tire) to complete this work to which I objected questioning why it is this expensive. The response I have received was that this price was set for all Canadian Tire stores for low profile tires. My tire size is 205/55/16 and I said that my tires are not low profile. I was told that the Canadian Tire Corporation has recently changed its policy and now considers 55 to be a low profile tire as it is one of the most popular sizes and it allows Canadian Tire to make more money on it. I was a little surprised but the sales representative assured me that the Canadian Tire Corporation matches all the prices in every location and I would not be able to find a cheaper rate. I signed the quote and left my car.
My car is a company car, so I called my boss to tell about the charges. The response I got was “That is insane!”. I called several other Canadian Tire stores asking for the quote. The prices were ranging from $16.99 to $24.99 for a tire. I quickly returned to the store and asked to stop, however, the summer tires were already off the wheels. I started arguing about the prices and wanted to get my car back but the shop manager told me he will not let my car out of the shop unless I pay $199 + taxes. One of the store representatives made calls to several Canadian Tire Stores in the area but didn’t get a quote over $24.99. After that the shop manager told me that every Canadian Tire store sets its own prices. The sales representative refused that he ever said about matching prices for all the stores even though my girlfriend and I both heard it. I had nothing to do but to pay in order to get my car back.
I told the shop manager that I am going to call the corporate office and the branch manager but he replied that these calls will be unnecessary.
I am seeking reimbursement in the amount of $113.03 in order to regain my trust and ever for me and my family to do business again with any Canadian Tire.
I hope that the Canadian Tire Corporation closely review my case and reimburse the above mentioned amount.
jona says...
If you thought the prices were out of wack, why not shop around before signing the quote? If I was in your situation and found that the price quoted to me seem high, I would have left and shopped around. But unfortunately, you got scammed/convinced into believe that it was a reasonable rate. Once you have signed the quote and they have started the work, your out of luck.
Not that I think its morally right to rip off customers, but you agreed to the price so pay it and chalk it up to a lesson learned. I doubt you will get anywhere with the corporation unless this store is a company store and not a franchisee.
Think of it this way, you have someone build you a swimming pool for X number of dollars and after its finished you find that another pool company that would have built you the same pool for $5000.00 less are you going to go to the guy who build your pool and say that you want $5000.00 back? No, you agreed to the price, they did the work and you paid them and you live with the agreement you signed.
Its called a signed contract….
Theresa says...
I thought it was a well known fact that if you live in Canada you NEVER get work done at Cdn. Tire. Have yet to meet a single person who has not been scammed by their service department.
RCSS Customer says...
as a female who doesn’t know a lot about cars, i make it a point to NEVER EVER EVER go to canadian tire alone when having to deal with their service department! sorry to hear about your problem - hope it works out
TJ says...
WOW !!! $ 200 just to install tires ..that’s insane !!!
My bro called Wal Mart for a quote ..for $ 330 they were going to give him 4 brand new winter tires + Balancing + Installation …..the 4 tires were around $ 280 ..so only $ 50 for installation & balancing ..even if he had bought his own tires the installation/balancing was pretty much the same ..nowhere close to $ 200 JUST for installation
B.Mcphee says...
i would say this is bad luck.you signed it,so unfortunately that means to them that you understood the terms.i have heard of privately owned canadian tires doing whatever they want.that includes changing prices,rules,etc. its sad.i don’t think there is much you can do,but you can fight them tooth and nail and maybe get an in store credit or something
Ashley says...
I’m sorry I find it very hard to sympathize since you signed the quote AGREEING the price was ok. If you felt it was too high, you should have called around to find a better price.
John says...
My local Ford dealership charges $8.00 per tire installation if they are NOT purchased there and if they are NOT on the rims. No other purchases or fees are rquired. With tax this costs me about $40 bucks to get the tires changed over. I can’t see how someone can charge $50 per tire!?!
Brock says...
If you sign an agreement, you are bound to it. It’s too little, too late to complain after.
EEE says...
I had a horrible experience at my Cnd Tire service center. In the end I decided to let it go. It wasn’t worth my sanity.
The biggest loser was Cnd Tire. I used to shop there weekly, and since my bad experience a year ago I’ve only gone twice to get small things that were on super special.
secretsmartcanuck says...
Hey Vlad, that’s tough luck. I feel bad for you because it is not right to be deceived by anybody. However, I think the most you should expect from Canadian Tire is an explanation of why this deception happened and possibly a coupon or what not. Like everyone is saying, car services frequently do not abide by the same rules as retail products. They’ve done the work so there’s no way to get money back from that. Lesson learned though, shop around next time before deciding on anything. Try Costco too, their service installation is fantastic!!
Oxana says...
That is why they call it Crappy Tire Inc.
I bought at Walmart. They installed and rotated all 4 tires,for free!With purchase from them. You just need to look around…
Brock says...
You sign the quote and leave your car and are surprised when they charge you the amount you agree to pay…COME ON MAN?!?! You will never get reimbursed with that argument. May I suggest you not get a tattoo anytime soon either. Much like a contract, they are final sale. LOL
Jomo says...
Here is how I see it :
There is NO corporate policy regarding tire pricing . All pricing for labour is set at the store level , and store specific .
55 series of tires are not low profile .
50.00 per tire is ridiculous .
Have you never before had a supplied tire installed at any location ( even excluding CTC ) ? If you did , you would know that 50.00 per wheel is insane pricing .
If you felt that the pricing was too high , why did you sign the contract ?
I agree you where ripped off .
I would suggest that a call to Customer relations will sort it out and you will get your refund , as that stores actions where criminal .