{"id":1485,"date":"2025-10-20T15:53:11","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T18:53:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/2025\/10\/20\/routine-oil-change-turns-into-highway-hazard-after-canadian-tire-uses-plastic-zip-ties-for-repair-says-driver\/"},"modified":"2025-10-20T15:53:11","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T18:53:11","slug":"routine-oil-change-turns-into-highway-hazard-after-canadian-tire-uses-plastic-zip-ties-for-repair-says-driver","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/2025\/10\/20\/routine-oil-change-turns-into-highway-hazard-after-canadian-tire-uses-plastic-zip-ties-for-repair-says-driver\/","title":{"rendered":"Routine oil change turns into highway hazard after Canadian Tire uses plastic zip ties for repair, says driver"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>Travis Jones says what should have been a routine oil change at Canadian Tire turned into a terrifying highway emergency after staff used plastic zip ties to secure a critical part of his car \u2014marking the start of a two-year fight for answers.He says as soon as he left his local Canadian Tire in Clarenville, N.L., in May 2023, he knew there was a problem with his 2017 Honda Civic. Jones says his car began shaking violently, making a roaring noise and struggling to reach highway speeds.Have a story you want Rosa and the Go Public team to investigate? Contact us at gopublic@cbc.ca\u201cIt was like the car was being dragged backward,\u201d he told Go Public. \u201cI was frightened to my near death. I was losing control of my vehicle and I was on the highway with other motorists and there was a transport truck right behind me.\u201dJones brought the car right back to Canadian Tire.It turns out, several bolts were missing from the engine splash shield \u2014 a plate that protects fragile parts under the car and is often removed during oil changes. Some shields are plastic, but Jones\u2019s was metal and he believed it had likely been dragging under the car.But instead of replacing the bolts, the staff used plastic zip ties to hold the shield in place. Jones says they didn\u2019t mention this until he asked \u2014 initially saying only that the problem had been fixed.\u201cI was gobsmacked. I really had no words,\u201d said Jones. \u201cI would\u2019ve went home not knowing that my underbody was being left on with zip ties unless I had asked.\u201dWATCH | Zip ties used for repair:Canadian Tire used plastic zip ties instead of bolts in car repair, driver says | Go Public A Canadian Tire customer in Newfoundland says a routine oil change led to a highway emergency, after staff replaced bolts with plastic zip ties to hold a key part of his car together. Canadian Tire\u2019s head office says that its locations are independently owned and operated, and its response is based only on information provided by that local dealer, which referred any questions to headquarters.Asked why the bolts were missing, Canadian Tire told Go Public the metal shield came off after the bolts \u201cfailed\u201d \u2014 something the company says can happen when they are repeatedly removed and replaced during regular maintenance.The retailer also said that location didn\u2019t have the proper replacement bolts, so it used a \u201cshort-term temporary solution.\u201dThat was news to Jones. He says no one told him the fix was temporary, or that it might be unsafe. Instead, he found out the hard way a few months later, when some zip ties snapped at high speeds, he says.Certified mechanic and automotive safety expert Mark Whinton says Canadian Tire staff should never have used zip ties for that type of job. (Craig Chivers\/CBC)Auto safety experts say the case shows how repairs done wrong can put everyone on the road at risk.\u201cThat was an improper repair from the get-go,\u201d said longtime certified mechanic and automotive safety expert Mark Whinton.\u201dThere\u2019s no two ways about this. You do not repair a car like they did.\u201dThe case also raises questions about service standards, and what Canadians should be asking when they hand their vehicles over to repair shops, says George Iny, the head of the Automobile Protection Association (APA).\u201dThe broader concern here is how repairs are done in a shop, who\u2019s supervising them, who gets to do what repairs, what level of learning is involved, if it was an apprentice or somebody who\u2019s not licensed,\u201d he said.Dangerous turn of eventsJones says after months of calls and emails, Canadian Tire finally agreed, in July 2023, to cover the cost of replacing the missing bolts at a Honda dealership.But there was a catch: He would have to pay more than $400 upfront for the work with promises of potential reimbursement.Jones says the staff at this Canadian Tire location didn\u2019t mention they\u2019d used zip ties to secure his engine splash shield until he asked. (Olivia Garrett\/CBC)Jones says he didn\u2019t accept the offer because he didn\u2019t have the money, and no longer trusted Canadian Tire to follow through, adding he was never offered reimbursement for the oil change that started it all.\u201cThey should have been paying Honda directly,\u201d said Jones. \u201cThey shouldn\u2019t have expected me, a customer, who had already paid them for my [oil] service to pay for the repairs that were needed because of their mistakes.\u201dThat was the first of two offers from the company. It later offered about $400 more after a second incident.That second incident happened in November 2023, when Jones says some of those zip ties snapped \u2014 dragging part of the metal plate under his car at highway speeds, causing him to slam into a ditch.This photo shows damage to the underplate of Jones\u2019s car, and where some of the zip ties were used instead of metal bolts. (Submitted by Travis Jones; emphasis added by CBC)\u201dI lost full control,\u201d Jones said. \u201cI did have minor injuries, the seatbelt down around my stomach, I was bloodied and scarred for quite a while, minor headaches and pain across the shoulder, but luckily, I survived a potentially fatal incident.\u201dHe complained to Transport Canada. An investigation found the responsibility likely lay with Canadian Tire, and was not a manufacturing flaw.Jones says, after all this time, he still doesn\u2019t understand why the company would use plastic zip ties in the first place.The company says it made multiple good-faith efforts to resolve the situation, and added it\u2019s open to resolving the issues.Surprisingly commonIny, with the APA, says though zip ties are commonly used in shops they should never be used for critical components like in Jones\u2019s case.They should be used, for example, \u201cto fasten hoses or wires to make sure that they don\u2019t flop loose in the engine compartment,\u201d he said.George Iny, the head of the Automobile Protection Association, says drivers should always ask who is doing the work on their vehicles, and what qualifications they have.  (Christian Patry\/CBC)Go Public repeatedly asked Canadian Tire how often it uses zip ties, for what kind of repairs, if it notifies customers they have been used, and if the company plans to stop using zip ties for these kinds of repairs given what happened to Jones. It didn\u2019t answer.So what should have happened? Whinton, the safety expert, says it\u2019s simple: Staff should have told Jones from the get-go they had used the zip ties, instead of waiting for him to ask what work was done.\u201cThey then should have informed the customer they would have to source the proper bolts and that there would be additional charges and time required to repair it,\u201d Whinton said.What may also surprise drivers, say both Iny and Whinton, is who is allowed to work on vehicles in professional garages.While the rules vary by province, in most jurisdictions, companies may cut costs by putting unlicensed or unskilled workers in charge of certain maintenance and repairs \u2014 instead of licensed mechanics.\u201cWhen you bring your car in, you think you\u2019re going to get a tune up, you think the mechanics work on it. They don\u2019t have to,\u201d said Whinton.He says some companies will hire \u201cunskilled people, [with] no compulsory trade experience,\u201d to keep costs down.Few qualificationsGo Public found several active job postings on the Canadian Tire website, looking to hire for locations across the country including B.C., Ontario, Alberta and Nova Scotia, showing how few qualifications are needed for some employees who work on customers\u2019 vehicles.The postings for \u201cautomotive service installers\u201d list duties such as oil changes, tire installations, inspections and emissions testing \u2014 all tasks that affect critical safety systems, say safety experts.Jones says he\u2019s lost faith in Canadian Tire after trouble with what should have been a routine oil change.  (Olivia Garrett\/CBC)But the qualifications are minimal, including: a valid driver\u2019s licence, the ability to stand and lift for long periods and availability for shift work. Previous experience is considered an asset, not a requirement.Canadian Tire would not say what qualifications the employees who used zip ties on Jones\u2019s car had and CBC News was unable to confirm what training the staff there received.In most provinces, there are no regulations prohibiting garages from hiring unskilled workers for these kinds of jobs.Jones says he spent months exchanging emails and calling the company to try to get answers but, more than two years after what should have been a routine oil change, he says the experience has left him physically shaken, emotionally exhausted and still lacking answers.He says he ended up removing the protective shield for now, until he can save the money to repair it properly or Canadian Tire decided to pay the cost upfront.\u201cCanadian Tire is a brand that I used to trust. I will not trust them again to service my vehicle. I was very disappointed.\u201dSubmit your story ideasGo Public is an investigative news segment on CBC-TV, radio and the web.We tell your stories, shed light on wrongdoing and hold the powers that be accountable.If you have a story in the public interest, or if you\u2019re an insider with information, contactgopublic@cbc.cawith your name, contact information and a brief summary. All emails are confidential until you decide to Go Public.Read more storiesby Go Public.Read about our hosts.  <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Travis Jones says what should have been a routine oil change at Canadian Tire turned into a terrifying highway emergency after staff used plastic zip ties to secure a critical part of his car \u2014marking the start of a two-year fight for answers.He says as soon as he left his local Canadian Tire in Clarenville, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1486,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[121,118,1],"tags":[120,116],"class_list":["post-1485","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-british-columbia","category-indigenous","category-uncategorized","tag-british-columbia","tag-indigenous"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1485","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1485"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1485\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1486"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1485"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1485"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/service.codeus.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1485"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}