Select Goodyear & Cooper Tires w/ Installation & Wheel Balance Expired

TL;DR - insist on paying $0 total for install, or $8 + tax total for install plus lifetime rotations, and not a cent more. If the store gives you a hard time, calling CS will resolve it. Have screenshots and stand your ground.

Information I got from the Commack NY Walmart on Saturday:


- You can install anytime so long as you bought the tires during BF promo. They actually have a binder full of QR codes which they scan and they auto populate the system with these promotions. The earliest I could get is Dec 5th, and they assured me that the promo would work there (for included tires, see below...)
- ONLY Reliant/Assurance Outlast/Cooper Discovery are eligible at an official capacity. However, I was able to get CS to do it with another set.
- They will install and balance any tire for $12 each, $14 for lifetime rotation. Unlike many forums that I have read, they couldnt care less where you purchased the tire. However, they will NOT install used tires.
- For NY, the new tire fee ($2.50) is included in the new tire purchase online (at least if you bought it through Walmart), so you dont pay it again at the store. Therefore, they didnt charge me it during install. They did not charge for valve stem either. They may try to charge $12/14 at the store, but show the banner from the website, and they will scan the QR code without issue.
- Walmart phone customer service isnt that smart (quoted me random reasons why my promo didnt work, including that the promo expired, or that it doesnt apply in NY...wut...), but they do strive to be helpful. I couldnt get the store to acknowledge the free install promo for some other Goodyear model (The Wintercommands), and she just out and credited me the install fee so that I could just pay the shop to do it.

The disconnect between the stores and whoever is running this promo is mind boggling. It doesn't help too that tire installation fee is not standard across all stores. Like the store I went too said their installation is always free whether BF or not but lifetime balance is $16 each tire and no option to purchase 1 time balance. So regardless of whether you bought the tires from Walmart or brought your own. Minimum is $16 each tire plus $3 valve stem, $2 disposal fee plus tax

At this point, have corporate clean their mess. Give a phone call, state that you were forced to pay $xx.xx, and they will likely credit you. I called on Saturday night around 6pm with a 1 min wait time (!!! on black weekend?) and got a nice pinai lady (similar to the ones who work the phones at Amazon or TMO at late night). Again, wasnt the smartest regarding the promo, and said outright that I wasnt eligible (wtf??), but she credited me anyway.

I did it before the install because like you, the store was not consistent with me. She gave me $56 (the cost of lifetime balance...$14 x 4). Now I can install them whenever I want (likely in the next month or so, when temps dip below 40 degrees)

It doesnt help that the parlance in Walmart auto depts for "installation" is simply "balance" but they will not mount tires that are used, for example but they will balance them if installed already?? So install= balance, but =/= balance when they are a certain kind of tire? wut?

Still beats the pants off of any local place (absolute cheapest local installer is $17 each for each tire).

I had 11am appointment to install 4 Goodyear Reliant tires at local Walmart auto center.
They told me the order was cancelled. And I would need to talk to someone from Walmart.com why that was. I'm on the phone with rep at Walmart.com, they are telling me it was the store that cancelled. The CS rep or even the supervisor said there's nothing they can do. I need to reorder at the current price.

I had 11am appointment to install 4 Goodyear Reliant tires at local Walmart auto center.
They told me the order was cancelled. And I would need to talk to someone from Walmart.com why that was. I'm on the phone with rep at Walmart.com, they are telling me it was the store that cancelled. The CS rep or even the supervisor said there's nothing they can do. I need to reorder at the current price.

I got my credit 100% back plus some but had to chat with CS for almost an hour. Pinay cs in most cases are not very helpful in my experience as they often lack authority to make a decision but I don't understand why other nationality CS can almost always make a call on something like this. I really want corporate to fix this mess otherwise they will run this again next year with exactly the same issues we have now and last year. Another thing i don't get too is what is the problem with these stores not willing to honor the deal. It's not their money anyway, its Walmart's

yes I never understood why managers always treat it as if I am taking THEIR PERSONAL MONEY when I am asking for something that corporate is clearly sanctioning.

I am used to this with Walmart (and to a smaller extent, Amazon). Corporate will not fix a problem that they wont acknowledge, and its probably "easier" (but not more profitable) to just give people piece-meal reimbursement just to make the squeakiest wheels quiet down. In many ways, it is like tipping culture in US restaurants...enough people profit from it that no one is incentivized to change a clearly broken/favoritist system.

As a result, we can actually manipulate the mistakes to win more than we should. I couldve gotten install credit for basically ANY tire set because of the horrible/broad interpretation of the promotion details (as long as they are Goodyear or Cooper, in this instance).

Maybe we can get free install on Eagle F1 supercar tires next time

It is true that with all the politeness (in my experience), pinai CS tends to overextend their abilities beyond their authority level (the exception being if they are very good friends...yes...FRIENDS...with a higher manager who can approve stuff on -the-spot). In companies which easily capitulate to make customers happy, like Amazon, you can get some massive perks (Ive gotten alot of free mouthwash, lol).

But for other companies, especally service-based ones with a long relationship (like TMO), those overpromise situations can cause a nightmare down the line. Saying that a customer can get every line for 50% off, only for that to not be true, is a recipe for disaster.

On the bright side...Walmart+ has been the surprise unsung hero of memberships since I got it last year. I thought it would be a pale copy of Amazon Prime, but it has really come onto its own. Getting the tires one day early for my mom let her book an appt the very next day...while I waited just one day longer, and my appt wont be until December 5th!!!

Anyone have the screenshots available? Post #342 doesn't have an attachment anymore on the desktop browser.

Attached for your convenience.