Defective Tire Chain
To those who would consider purchasing Laclede Chain’s tire chains,
My wife purchased a brand-new set of Laclede tire chains from O'Reilly Auto Parts for a brand-new 2020 Ford Explorer. We took a trip to Mammoth Mountain in California in December 2022. On the trip we were required to install and drive on the tire chains. In route to Mammoth one of the tire chains broke and chewed up the felt fender well on our new SUV. Additionally, the remaining tire chain links broke loose and tore up the remaining fender wells.
O'Reilly Auto Parts sold my wife the Laclede tire chains reportedly designed for the 2020 Ford Explorer. However, when confronted regarding the defective tire chains, O'Reilly Auto Parts store employees tried to blame my wife for not purchasing the right size for our SUV. After talking with the store manager, O'Reilly Auto Parts, we were able to get a refund for the defective tire chains. However, we now needed to file a complaint with Laclede Chain to repair the damage to our Explorer that did not even have 6,000 miles on it. The warranty claim was reportedly submitted, but I never heard anything back. I engaged with the O'Reilly Auto Parts store manager on multiple occasions with no updates. Finally, one year later, I must pay for the replacement parts myself, totaling $707 in repairs. All I’ve asked was for Laclede Chain to make it right and to repair the damage to my vehicle, but they were unwilling to try or even contact me regarding the issue. The O'Reilly Auto Parts store manager stopped communicating with me as well.
Therefore, based on their unsatisfactory business practices, I will never buy nor recommend that anyone buy any Laclede Chain products. They are unwilling to standby their product and pushed the cost of their defective tire chains on to their customer, me. Lastly, Laclede Chain may not be solely at fault. O'Reilly Auto Parts should bear some of the responsibility as well for two reasons. First, they may have sold my wife the wrong part, and its employees did not verify the accurate tire chain part number to ensure they were not at fault. Second, the O'Reilly Auto Parts store corporation should carry some form of insurance to protect its customers, while forcing its suppliers to maintain reliable insurance and warranty policies. These items were not reflected in my current dealings with O'Reilly Auto Parts.
Finally, after a year of trying to make it right, I wanted to share my unsatisfactory experience with both organizations. Furthermore, I want to caution anyone in need of auto parts and more specifically tire chains to rethink purchasing items from both O'Reilly Auto Parts and Laclede Chain. There are more reputable organizations that will carry insurances and warranties to protect both their customers and their corporations. I urge anyone and everyone to purchase their automotive needs from those businesses and not O'Reilly Auto Parts and Laclede Chain.
Respectfully sent:
Tracy