Car press

3 November 2006
PNEUS-ONLINE: THE SITE WITH A GUARANTEE

After being the first website to sell tyres, Pneus-Online has today become the first site to offer its customers a puncture guarantee on all tyres sold on its site.
In 2001, by sheer determination, Alexis Nerguisian succeeded in persuading reluctant French shoppers to embrace the first tyre sales website, Pneus-Online. Since then, the site has generated record figures: 100,000 tyres sold in 2006, 300,000 visitors to the site every month, and 1,700 partner fitting centres across Europe (900 of which are located in France). With results like these, Pneus-Online prides itself on being the benchmark for French Internet tyre consumers. To cement its reputation and expand the range of services it provides for its 70,000 or so customers, the site is now offering a 24 month puncture guarantee. This is a first in Europe. 'We wanted to demonstrate to our customers that we weren't just there to sell tyres. We also offer service and this guarantee is an additional service covering all tyre sizes, all brands and includes bike tyres'. The first year is free, all tyres bought on the site being covered automatically. The customer then has the option of extending the coverage by a further 12 months by paying a fixed 5 ¤ fee per tyre, whatever its type. By comparison, certain 'tyre expert' networks charge a minimum of 10 ¤ per tyre for insurance with the price increasing in proportion to the cost of the tyre. After only two weeks from launch, the puncture guarantee is a resounding success. And for good reason: 3 - 4% of tyres suffer punctures during their average lifetime of two to two and a half years. Although a proportion of these punctures are due to wear, others are caused by vandalism or blow-outs from hitting the kerb a bit too hard. Both these types of puncture are also covered by the guarantee offered by the site and backed by the Arisa Insurance Company.

Extract: Le Journal de l'Automobile - Ambre Delage - 3 November 2006