Help Center

Answers to your Frequently Asked Questions

Knowledge is Power, Information is Liberating.



    Sniff Your Price & Availability F.A.Q's

1.  What is “Sniff Your Price & Availability?  Can I get a quick overview?
2.  What “Sniff Your Price & Availability” is not:
3.  Where is the User Dashboard?
4.  When do I pay for the tires?
5.  Is my offer request anonymous?
6.  How many tire offers may I send out at one time?
7.  How long is the offer request period open to retailers & How long do I have to choose an offer?
8.  What and how many retailers will be receiving my offer request?
9.  Only one bid came in, now what?
10.  I’m not finding retailers to sniff my price with.
11.  I selected 2 tires and submitted an offer request which all stores came back with unavailable. What does that mean?
12.  Is Sniff Your Price based off of the Nationwide Average Tire Price?
13.  How do I know what a good deal is?
14.  What is a Tire Price Lock Certificate (T.P.L.C)?
15.  I accidentally chose and submitted the wrong tire size and agreed to a deal.
16.  What do I do if: I get to the retailers shop and they simply disagreed to the terms of their offer.
17.  I used the Sniff Your Price feature and got an amazing deal. However the store was less-than-good/amazing.
18.  Is it possible for me to find better pricing by walking in the store or calling the phone?
19.  I need tires right this second. What can Online Tire Quotes do for me?
20.  Is “Sniff Your Price” available on all tires, such as those without a Nationwide Average Price (N.A.P) or Private Label?


    General F.A.Q's

1.  I searched my vehicles year/make/model via the site but I have a different size on the tires?
2.  Personally, I am still a bit overwhelmed and do not know what tire to choose in order to sniff the price?
3.  There is a tire brand and or model I would like to see on onlinetirequotes.com but it is not listed?


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Sniff Your Price & Availability

1.  Q:  What is “Sniff Your Price & Availability?  Can I get a quick overview?
A:  Sniffing your price and availability allows shoppers to collect, compare and purchase a tire faster and more conveniently than ever before.
It provides shoppers with the best possible price + incentive & warranty offers with minimal effort, time and without needing any tire knowledge or experience what so ever.
It is a 2 click tire shopping process: Simply select a tire from the the site and submit your offer request to local retailers. Offers are put together side by side in your user dashboard (profile) so you can compare how they stack up allowing you to choose the deal that best fits your needs.
Choosing a deal locks in that deal and creates a Tire Price Lock Certificate for you guaranteeing that offer for 7 days. VICTORY!)
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2.  Q: What “Sniff Your Price & Availability” is not:
A: This is a feature designed at it’s core to deliver you the most powerful tire shopping experience guaranteed to save you the most time and money possible. With that said - It is not designed for shoppers to abuse and use as a way to manipulate the system by way of submitting offers just to see what kind of prices you can get and then price shop in an effort to beat down retailers and playing the cut throat game. It is a wast of everybody’s time and goes against the ethos of what we’re all here for. Users found to be violating the terms of service will be notified. Don’t be that shopper.
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3.  Q: Where is the User Dashboard?
A: In the top right corner of onlinetirequotes.com, you will see your “Hello Username”. Clicking that will take you into your user dashboard profile where you will find “Manage Offer Requests” allowing you to monitor and select offers and view/print your T.P.L Certificates.
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4.  Q: When do I pay for the tires?
A: Payment is never taken on OnlineTireQuotes.com. Payment is completed with your tire retailer after the tire install is done. No waiting around for monitoring third-party processing. We want to be as transparent as possible when it comes to the consumer / retailer interaction after Online Tire Quotes has done it's part. Because, as progressive as we are, nothing beats good old fashioned hand-to-hand payment with a handshake.
Please note: It is common for some retailers to collect a down payment in some situations - It is at their own policy and discretion.
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5.  Q: Is my offer request anonymous?
A: Yes, and it is anonymous for both sides. Tire retailers do not know what user submits the tire offer request. Tire retailers do not know what other dealers submit offers nor do they know the prices/incentives their competition has submitted back to the user. The system is designed to remove any need for back and forth commmunitcation to iron our ambiguities which ultimately would undermine the objective of saving time.
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6.  Q: How many tire offers may I send out at one time?
A: Three - 3 tire request offers may be open at any one time. This provides plenty of flexibility regarding the number of tires interested in and areas to submit to while respecting the retailers time and success for engaging in the offer process. We strive to provide a balanced shopping environment for both customers and retailers.
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7.  Q: How long is the offer request period open to retailers & How long do I have to choose an offer?
A: Retailers have up to 48 hours (the "LIVE status" period) to respond to your request with their offer. Retailers know that it is in their best interest to engage as quickly as possible naturally besting their chance for acceptance considering the clock is ticking and a shoppers want their tires asap. After the 48 hour LIVE status period, a customer then has a 48 hour window to "Choose An Offer" and lock in the deal with their T.P.L Certificate.
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8.  Q: What and how many retailers will be receiving my offer request?
A: How many retailers receiving your offer request is subject to who carries/specializes in the tire brand you seek and in the area you have searched. The anatomy of an offer request begins with the tire brand (ex. Michelin) of the model (ex. Pilot Super Sport) you have selected to “Sniff Your Price” for. Once you’ve entered in how many tires you need and the area to search, OnlineTireQuotes looks for retailers who carry and specialize in that tire brand (ex. Michelin). All OnlineTireQuotes participating retailers in the area you’ve searched who do carry/specialize in that tire brand will receive your tire offer request. Example: Of 28 participating tire retailers in your search area, 1 (one) may only carry the brand you seek or all 28. Keep in mind, a successful offer request need only 1 one retailer.
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9.  Q: Only one bid came in, now what?
A: Not to worry! You are already victorious. By nature of “Sniff Your Price” you have a highly competitive offer designed to be a better-than-best offer vs. the competition who did not engage or we’re not a part of the offer process. Keep the objective in mine.
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10.  Q: I’m not finding retailers to sniff my price with.
A: OnlineTireQuotes.com is a San Diego upstart company. We are hard at work creating relationships with tire retailers everyday so that we can provide our features and benefits to both retailers and customers. If the tire you are trying to submit and offer request for has no participating retailers in a chosen area, let us know and we will do all we can to provide the service in your area.
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11.  Q: I selected 2 tires and submitted an offer request. All stores came back with unavailable. What does that mean?
A: Often times, a tire model or size can go on back order. This means that the retailers/dealers do not even have the option of ordering the product, even if they pay for shipping. If you are experiencing difficulty finding product available in your areas, it is recommended to call a location of your choice to see what they either have in stock or what they recommend putting on your vehicle. At that point, you can find the tire on onlinetirequotes.com and “Sniff Your Price & Availability” knowing that many stores will have access to that product at different prices then yeilding successful results.
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12.  Q: Is Sniff Your Price based off of the Nationwide Average Tire Price?
A: Nationwide Average Pricing is a powerful tool on it’s own. When it comes to incorporating it with the "Sniff Your Price feature", it is used as a benchmark so stores have regulation to work off of. It is NOT a price that any and all tire retailers must base their price offers from.
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13.  Q: How do I know what a good deal is?
A: It is critical that a tire shopper understand that the lowest price is not always the best choice or indicative of a good deal, especially in the Sniff Your Price environment. When retailers submit their offers, look at the warranties provided and additional incentives & their shop profile. Pricing at or within $10 of the Nationwide Average Price is considered competitive.
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14.  Q: What is a Tire Price Lock Certificate (T.P.L.C)?
A: The T.P.L.C is your physical claim to tire shopping victory. It locks in and guarantees your selected offer with the retailer for a period of 7 days after selection. It is proof you’ve selected a tire, submitted a request and chosen your best deal. The typical tire shopper will never experience a victory quite like the one you’ve just had.
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15.  Q: I accidentally chose and submitted the wrong tire size and agreed to a deal.
A: No matter how sure shoppers are, sometimes they can choose an incorrect size or possibly be told a wrong size to search. No shame. Informing the store a.s.a.p is the best first step. The stores usually will politely return the tires and bring in the correct product suiting your needs. (users have the ability to reach out to retailers if a situation requires)
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16.  Q: What do I do if: I get to the retailers shop and they simply disagreed to the terms of their offer.
A: Immediately inform us. Online Tire Quotes does not condone or tolerate low-ball/bait and switch tactics, a breech of terms or misuse of the service. Online Tire Quotes will address the servicing dealer accordingly. We will resubmit your offer request. If another stores offer fits your needs, we can see if they would like to honor their offer and earn your business.
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17.  Q: I used the Sniff Your Price feature and got an amazing deal. However the store was less-than-good/amazing.
A: OnlineTireQuotes.com provides it's users with innovative features and tools for a terrific tire shopping experience. Just as tires may be reviewed, so may retail locations. We encourage our users to rate and review their retailer/buying experience after being serviced. Tell the community how great a shop was or how something didn’t quite measure up for you. Not only are you able to compare prices, warranties & incentives - store profiles and performance ratings are immediately available as a “background check” to help you compare each one and make that split haired decision or maybe just to check em’ out before you lock in your offer.
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18.  Q: Is it possible for me to find a better deal by walking in the store or calling the phone?
A: Not likely. Why? Because when you walk into a store, sales people know that you took the time to drive to the location for one reason, to buy product. They can assume that you do not have the time to drive to every location in the city getting price quotes (not necessariy full package offers like sniff your price) for a multitude of tires different and incomparable to the tires they are offering you. Meaning, you wont typically be comparing apples to apples.

Calling on the phone typically allows you to acquire more competitive price quotes with the understanding that you can call around five stores with varying degrees of success.

Using “Sniff Your Price & Availability” stores know that within 2 clicks the customer has access to all stores in an area competing for your business.
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19.  Q: I need tires right this second. What can Online Tire Quotes do for me?
A: We understand that time can be very much of the essence in some situations. Online Tire Quotes will still save you money. How? Instead of running into a shop and being subjected to a tire and price on their terms, use Online Tire Quotes’s Nationwide Average Price tool to compare what is being offered to you so that you can distinguish a good deal from a bad one. In 30 seconds you've uncovered what would take hours or more. No longer must a shopper ever have to buy a tire not knowing if they got ripped off or not. As we like to say, “knowledge is power, information is liberating”.
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20. Q: Is “Sniff Your Price” available on all tires, such as those without a Nationwide Average Price (N.A.P) or Private Label?
A: Yes and No.
Yes: Tires without a Nationwide Average Price can still be “Sniffed” so to speak. Bearing in mind that the N.A.P is a tool to enhance a users selection capabilities, it is not a prerequisite for the Sniff Your Price feature. Every tire, except (No) private label tires (those sold exclusively by a particular retailer) can be “Sniffed”.
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General

1.  Q: I searched my vehicles year/make/model via the site but I have a different size on the tires?
A: This is very common. Many vehicles when bought used have had different size tires installed for various reasons. The simple solution to this situation: We always recommend reading the tire size on the sidewall of your current tires to verify the correct application.
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2.  Q: Personally, I am still a bit overwhelmed and do not know what tire to choose in order to sniff the price?
A: Not to worry! The Forums are wide open where tire specialists are there to assist in recommendations and advice. Just add a NEW TOPIC in the General Discussion Forum under Tires HERE. We will take care of you.
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3.  Q: There is a tire brand and or model I would like to see on onlinetirequotes.com but it is not listed?
A: OnlineTireQuotes.com is continuously expanding product on a daily basis. We invite our users to drop us a message letting us know of any brand and or model product you are seeking information on or to use other site features with.
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