US importer ordered to recall Chinese-made tyres

Foreign Tyre Sales Inc., of Union, New Jersey, said an unknown number of the light truck radials it imported since 2002 from Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Co., of Hangzhou, China, could suffer tread separation, a problem that led to the largest tyre recall in the US in 2000.

FTS said an unknown number of the tyres it sold were made without a safety feature, called a gum strip, which helps bind the belts of a tyre to each other, the company said in a filing to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Some of the tyres had a gum strip about half the 0.6 millimetre width that FTS expected, it said.

Heather Hopkins, a spokeswoman for NHTSA, said its enforcement officials spoke to FTS on Monday to 'let them know we want a full tyre recall to take place.' 'It is FTS' responsibility to do this,' Ms Hopkins said.

FTS failed to add a 'remedy' in its June 11 filing, which is essentially a description of how a company will notify customers and provide proper consumer compensation, Ms Hopkins said.

FTS attorney Lawrence N. Lavigne said the tyres appear to meet federal standards but could still pose a risk to motorists.

'FTS, at great expense, investigated this,' Mr Lavigne said. The company, which has about a half-dozen employees, does not have the money to pay for a recall, he said.

FTS does not have a warehouse. It has tyres shipped directly to distributors, who in turn send them to retail outlets, Mr Lavigne said.

FTS said it believes other importers also sold such tyres made by Hangzhou Zhongce. The Chinese company has failed to provide information that would allow FTS to determine exactly how many tyres, and which batches, have the problem, Mr Lavigne said.

According to the filing, the Hangzhou tyres at issue were sold under at least four brand names - Westlake, Compass, Telluride and YKS. -- AP

Credits: nikolaiski