New stock of tyres displayed at a shop in Doha. Pic: Abdul Basit / The Peninsula
New tyres with one-year warranty are strong enough to increase the life expectancy of the product as required under the new rules but their prices are higher by around 10 to 15 percent compared to the ones which were previously sold with six-year warranty.
The Qatar General Authority for Specifications and Standardisation of the Ministry of Municipality and Environment had extended the warranty on tyres from six months to one year last year and asked the importers to bring stronger products.
The decision is aimed at improving the quality of tyres and give consumers enough time to discover any manufacturing defects or storage problems as a six-month warranty was not enough.
Following the decision, the suppliers had started importing tyres with new specifications that could meet the new warranty period. The traders told The Peninsula that new tyres hit the local market in the beginning of this year and they are stronger but "a little bit expensive".
“Now we are providing one year warranty for all tyres available in my shop as per the requirements of the authorities concerned," said a manager of a tyre shop operating in the Industrial Area, Street No. 10.
"We have started receiving new products from the beginning of this year. The prices of low quality of tyres have increased by about QR30 from QR160 to QR190 per tyre. The famous brands of tyres have also witnessed price hike of around QR50, from QR350 to QR400."
The prices of tyres for heavy vehicles went up significantly by about QR150 because of the new decision, he added. It is difficult for customers, and even some traders, to understand the differences between old and new tyres by looking at it, said a salesman at a tyre outlet in Salwa Road.
All tyres entering the country have undergone quality and specification checks at customs before the clearance of the consignments and inspectors visit the retail outlets and stores every now and then. So the customers need not worry in this regard, said a shopkeeper.
"Retail outlets were instructed to stop selling tyres of passenger vehicles, buses and light trucks after 24 months while the expiry period for heavy trucks tyres is 30 months from the date of manufacturing," said a shopkeeper. The tyres should be valid at least one year from the date of sale. Outlets are also required to provide warranty for one year from the date of sale and it is banned to showcase or store expired tyres, he added.
To ensure that outlets are complying with the rules regarding the expiry date and warranty, the inspectors pay regular visits to the outlets. "We give warranty of one year but tyres could last more than one year as per its use especially in case of personal use."
"But motorists unaware of the dangers of tyre burst due to use of old tyers for long, putting their lives and lives of others at risk. With soaring temperatures, the risk of tyre burst increases," said a salesman.
“Today, we received a customer who suffered tyre burst. Thank God the second tyre saved the motorist and vehicle from any harm or damage. It was a refrigerated vehicle carrying meat products. The incident of tyre-burst took place when the vehicle was running on highway,” he added.
The Peninsula found an outlet storing expired tyres in the heap of scrap tyres in a corner of the shop arguably to hoodwink the inspectors.
Some customers, especially those looking for cheaper tyres, could fall victim to the trick of greedy traders who defy the laws to make money. They do not bother to see the manufacturing date, which is very important to calculate the expiry date of tyers. Every tyre has a manufacturing date on the sidewall in the form of four numbers usually preceded by the letters DOT. These numbers represent the week number and year, so 3016 will be week 30, 2016. It means the tyre was manufactured in August 2016. According to experts, tyres are made mostly of rubber, and rubber degrades with ageing. It means tyres become useless in the store after a certain period, and therefore it is important for motorists to check the expiry date before buying tyres.
The Peninsula further noted that most of the tyre shops do not have separate warranty books so they usually mention the warranty on the sale invoice of sold tyres.
