Typical Tread Wear Charge

Leasing tread wear charges may be owed by to you depending on the type of lease agreement you signed. When you check out a trailer on lease a representative from the leasing company will perform a walk around. Make sure you are present during this very important procedure. One of the things they will check is the tread depth on each of the tires on the trailer. They perform this step to arrive at a tread wear starting point regardless of the type of lease you have.

Tread wear is usually based on 32nds of an inch. You can expect anywhere from $25-$35 per 32nd. Average tread wear should be somewhere around 12,000 miles per 32nd. Average tread wear will depend on the type of tire, axle alignment, average weight of load, and driving habits. Axle alignment and driving habits are the most crucial elements in this equation.

While axle alignment is tough to determine with a visual inspection. You can find some helpful tips for spotting alignment issues in the repair section under axle alignments.

A leasing tread wear charge will be imposed to you due to neglect. Tires that achieve less than 10,000 miles per 32nd usually are considered neglect. Additionally, most lease agreements state specific intervals in which the lessor must be notified and arrangements made to have new tires or brakes put on the trailer. Failure to do so will lead to you being charged for tread wear and if you run a tire to less than 2/32nds you will be charged for a tire casing core charge of around $75 per tire.

Some companies try to avoid leasing tread wear charges by swapping out tires just before a lease term is up to pay less than what is owed. Trailer leasing companies however are becoming more sophisticated. Tire branding is one way leasing companies can track which tires are not on the trailer at the time the trailer is turned in. The tire branding I am talking about is not the Good Year vs. Hankook tire. It is the cattle type of branding. Specific special branding irons brand each tire in a specific place. This is a special identifier unique to the leasing company. It can also be used to track tire theft in your own fleet.

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