The art of Flim Flam

So, today is my day to rant about the treatment of women by the automobile industy.  Women are not inferior to men.  Each individual has strong points and weak points.  Our skill sets are different.  It is just human nature.  All that being said, I see women being treated as less intelligent when it comes to car purchases and repairs.  This morning was a perfect example.

My husband works Monday through Friday from 8:00am until 5:00pm or later.  This left the responsibilty of purchasing tires to me.  Not generally a problem.  We priced the tires and went to the local Discount Tire and asked for a price match.  No problem there.  I made an appointment and made my way to get the new tires.  All was going very well until I was paying and the salesman offered to add an additional 2 tires for a total of 4.  He explained that there was a rebate if we purchased a full set.  I agreed and made my purchase for four tires of the specifications that I originally requested.  No problems there.

After waiting for the tires to be installed, I got into my truck and came home.  The ride was nice and I realized how badly the tires were needed.  The problem came next.  My husband came home for lunch and immediately said, "Those aren't the tires we asked for.  How much did he charge you and what did he say he was selling you?"  I pulled out the receipt and sure enough, he had changed the tire model to the cheaper tire without telling me and did not adjust the price to reflect the change.  A total difference of $62 after we repriced the tires we received.  Would this have happened if my husband had went to the tire shop?  I highly doubt it because he would have known they were wrong before he left the shop.  He would have known to ask if they had enough of the correct tires in stock.  I am not blaming being female on the swindle but my lack of knowledge.  However, I do blame the salesman for flim flamming.  He knew I didn't know much about tires because I did say so.  I realize my limitations and he exploited that fact.

My lesson was learned today.  Firstly, that I need to be more aware of the reciepts when I handle car related transactions.  Secondly, that Discount Tire is known for flim flam sales. And thirdly, I know my limitations and need to refuse to handle transactions that are outside of that scope.