But tire companies, to protect trade secrets , are adept at getting sensitive information sealed by courts. Secret details All 10 of the tread-separation cases known to have been settled out of court are sealed. Every single bit of information concerning their analysis of why tires failed in the field is sealed. He is suing tire companies over tread separation. Lawyers say they even have been threatened with contempt of court citations for swapping data that was sealed in one case but not in others.
Confidentiality agreements are a routine part of legal settlements.
Still, the paucity of handy tire information registers as inappropriate with consumer watchdog Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore. I think to allow consumers to be put at risk is unacceptable. In a fatal-accident report, even if they list a tire as causing the accident, it's unlikely they'll list the type of tire. Consumer Reports magazine is developing a tire-rating system that could be ready next year. Now, its tests rank performance under various conditions, but can't predict durability or find quality flaws.