Got two new front tyres on Tuesday then the wheel falls off today whilst traveling down the A1.. coincidence or garage at fault?

[Browndoor25]

So I got two new front tyres fitted on Tuesday then on Saturday I noticed a weird noise, like the wind getting under the car and flapping plastic or something, I asked my husband to look and he said some of the plastic is slightly loose but that it’s not anything to worry about. I was going to get in booked in on Monday anyway. I was driving to work today and it was getting worse which I thought was odd then suddenly there’s a bang and the front passenger wheel is off.

Thankfully nobody has been hurt which is the main thing! I’m not car savvy at all but never had any issues with the wheels before in the whole time I’ve had the car. Could it be the garage not fixing the wheel properly when they changed the tyres?

When Kwikfit change tyres they always recommend that you have them checked after about 50 miles (can’t remember exact figure). Check your paperwork to see if it says anything similar.

Quite likely that someone forgot to fully tighten the wheel nuts. Not a coincidence. I'd be contacting the garage asking them to cover the repairs and all related costs. You are very lucky not to have been injured or worse.

The invoice from the tyre garage I use states to return after 30 miles of driving for a wheel nut check. If it says so on your paperwork they wont accept responsibility.

As above, check your paperwork.

Of course they should have not come loose (not yesterday, today, tomorrow, next-week etc) but every time we have had tyres replaced, the invoice clearly states that the wheel nuts to be checked for tightness within a set timeframe/distance and my OH has always done this.

Yes. Happened to us a few weeks ago. We had the tires replaced and the front right hadn't been torqued. Luckily we realised before the wheel came off but it gave us both a scare.

I have seen a thread about this on here before.

I think honestly, yes you should read the paperwork and if it says there you may not be able to blame them but the fact this could have been catastrophic suggests to me that garages need to be relaying this verbally to customers.

Something similar happened to me. I drove from the north to Norfolk after a tyre change, and the steering went funny with odd sounds. Took the car to a garage in the holiday village and two wheel nuts on the replaced wheel were missing.

Every days a school day here!!

They'll not pay up for sure, if the invoice says you should have come back after x miles and you did not. They'll have taken a note of mileage on the clock.

I didn't know about having to do this either!

How shit for you OP. Thank god no one was hurt ! 💐

The invoice will say to check tires after 30-50 miles, and the fact that you heard a funny noise and still didn't check them 🤦🏻‍♀️

Sorry, but the garage isn't at fault here

The garage isn't at fault for not tightening the wheel nuts properly?

Yes the OP should have checked but to say they are not at fault is ridiculous. Whether the op will have any comeback is a different matter, but it's gross negligence.

I'd be contacting trading standards.

What did the paperwork you got from the garage say op.

Completely agree. Some people won't read the invoice, others might read it a couple of days later and might already have done a lot of miles. I would have assumed if there was some vital safety info such as this in the invoice, they would also tell you verbally.

I've never noticed or been told to bring the car back to have the wheels nuts checked.

To be honest, them making sure the bolts are fully machine tightened so the wheel doesn't come off while driving is fucking basic!

That’s a really short distance to check them after.

id be leaving the garage and going back the same day for them to check!

Every time I’ve ever had tyres changed the garage has recommended checking the wheel bolts after 30 - 50 miles

WTF?! Of course they’re at fault. They obviously didn’t do it properly. Hence the wheel coming off. You should be able to drive thousands of miles without the wheel coming off.

I had this same happen to me. Drove down to London after having a tyre change, On my way back up,the M11 the wheel fell off! Had to be relayed back home and Kwikfit accepted responsibility and repaired my car, twice as the same thing happened again with the replacement wheel! They also had to do something with the axle that had bent under the pressure so get it checked.
never used Kwikfit again!

I'm in my 60's been driving for 42 years, and have NEVER been told this when I've had a tyre changed or whatever! As a previous poster said, this is basic stuff that people's lives depend on, hence EVERYONE should be told when they have this sort of work done, that they should check after whatever period of time/mileage is recommended. Do you know how much it's going to cost to get the damager repaired yet OP? I think in your shoes, whether or not it says it on the paperwork, I'd be inclined to take them to court over it if they refuse to pay up, as relying on someone reading an invoice, in order to cover themselves against what could be a serious accident, is absolutely ridiculous. What if the person can't read?

I'm glad you're OK, and no one else was hurt OP! Please come back and let us know how you get on.

unless the paperwork says to check. Which I would bet good money it does. I’ve been driving for 40 years. The garage always tells you to tighten the wheel nuts.

Although they all state to return to get the wheel nuts tightened after about 30mins, my local tyre garage told me that it shouldn’t be necessary.

I specifically asked because I was going on a long drive the following morning so would miss the 30 mile check on all 4 new tyres.

Theyre 2 yrs old now and still not been back to get the wheel nuts tightened. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Where are all these places that give invoices for tyres? I've been driving for nearly 40 years, I've bought tyres from dozens of places and never got anything more than a credit card receipt.

Not ridiculous if that's what the invoice states (which I'm betting it does) it's not as thought the wheel fell off instantly either. OP had been driving on it for 5 days? And it was "making a funny noise"

I've never been told to take car back to check for this?
Like others I agree there should be some verbal warning. The first thing that popped into my mind was it's same type of thing when you buy underwear. They always verbally tell you you can't return it.

Yes your paperwork will almost definitely say to check wheel nuts after x minutes/x miles whatever comes first.

A company can't just absolve themselves of all responsibility buy burying some text in the smallprint and shifting all the responsibility to the customer.

Yes, she should have investigated the noise, but there is definitely negligence on the part of the garage. If it's fitted properly a wheel doesn't just fall off after 5 days.

Maybe the stripped the thread or something, but it's on them. Like I said I'd be contacting trading standards and I would be mentioning the recent tyre change to the insurance company.