Deflating experience

I had a deflating experience this week.

On the return journey from Wembley (see previous post) a warning light told me the pressure in my rear nearside tyre was low.

Within a few miles I realised I had a slow puncture, although the tyre was actually deflating quite quickly.

Anyway, I managed to nurse the car home - stopping three times to inflate the tyre, which I saw had a large screw embedded in it - whereupon I drove it straight to the small, independent tyre and exhaust centre I have used many times to repair punctures or purchase new tyres.

I’m not such a frequent customer that I expect to be recognised instantly. Nevertheless it’s a small business and the owner is the person I usually speak to and he’s always been fairly helpful.

Well, I arrived at 4.30pm, 30 minutes before the unit was due to close for the day. The owner (I’ll call him Frank) was standing outside with two or three employees. They were chatting and the entrance to the service area was open.

I’m in luck, I thought.

By now the tyre was seriously deflated so I asked Frank if they could fix it temporarily and I would order a new tyre to be fitted the following day.

I paraphrase but Frank’s response was essentially, “No. We weren’t expecting any more customers today so we’ve turned the compressor off.”

Now I know from previous experience (having had an identical puncture last year en route to Chester) that a temporary repair takes about 15-20 minutes, but Frank was adamant.

They couldn’t, or wouldn’t, fix my tyre. Instead, he suggested I go to a rival tyre service, part of a national chain, further down the road.

So that’s what I did. Unfortunately it was busier there and other customers were ahead of me so I had to book an appointment for the following day (Thursday).

They did at least inflate the tyre so I could drive home, but I knew what would happen. Under the weight of the car, the tyre would deflate again, which is exactly what happened.

I woke up on Thursday morning to find the tyre completely flat, leaving me with the problem of inflating it so I could drive it back to the tyre shop, five miles away.

Long story short, my neighbour saw my flat tyre and offered me his tyre inflator. That got me back to the tyre shop where they repaired the tyre and replaced two other tyres that were said to be worn or damaged.

Total cost: £624.73.

As for the small independent tyre company that declined to help, I will never go back. They clearly don’t want the work so I’ll take my business elsewhere in future.

My only regret is that I didn’t say this at the time. Instead, being British, I thanked them and went on my way.

B*stards.