Tire Blowout Accidents | Deadly & Preventable

Written by Jeremy D. Earle, JD

March 13, 2023

Experienced Colorado Springs Car Accident Attorneys

You normally don’t have time to arrange an evacuation strategy if you’re stuck in traffic next to a car that has a tire blowout. A motorist’s behaviors and emotions while trying to regain control after a blowout are typically comparable to those of a distracted or sleepy driver or someone under the influence of drugs or alcohol. When a blowout happens, many drivers lose control. If you’re in a nearby lane, you and your car will very certainly become unintended victims.

When a motorist blows a tire while driving at highway speeds, it may cause considerable damage and catastrophic injury to people around them. When a bigger car, such as a pickup truck collides with a smaller car, the damage potential rises.

When a tractor-trailer rig driver has a blowout, the subsequent collision often damages many cars. It may result in severe or catastrophic injuries, necessitating the assistance of an expert personal injury attorney.

IN COLORADO, THERE HAVE BEEN SEVERAL BLOWOUT ACCIDENTS.

Blowout accidents happen all the time on Colorado roads and around the nation. Several recent collisions around the state resulted in severe injuries, one death, and significant property damage. Fortunately, casualties were minimal in several collisions since they happened on quiet routes with just one car involved.

On May 4, 2020, a semi-truck transporting livestock overturned due to a blown tire in Pawnee County. Minor injuries were received by one of the truck’s passengers. The rescue squad used the jaws of life to extract the driver from the wreckage after 6 hours of work. The livestock got away but was subsequently found.

Denver County, May 15, 2018: After a tractor-trailer truck fell over a guardrail and flipped due to a blowout, cauliflower heads tumbled across the roadway. The driver did not report injuries.

Broomfield County, August 15, 2019: A truck transporting donated supplies overturned following a tire rupture on the Colorado Turnpike. Many of the donated products, especially perishable food, were beyond repair. Additional tire blowouts were triggered by debris from the accident on multiple tractor-trailer cars passing through the region. There were no other cars involved, and the driver reported no injuries.

El Paso County, November 18, 2018: A tire rupture triggered a rollover accident in which three men were badly wounded. A fourth guy was injured, although just slightly.

November 11, 2018, El Paso County: The driver was pronounced dead at the scene when his RV tire blew out, causing him to lose control and crash into a light pole.

WHAT CAUSES BLOWOUTS IN CARS?

When a tire breaks owing to a lack of air pressure, a blowout occurs. While blowouts happen quickly, most tire blowouts are caused by factors that have built up over time. The following factors cause problems with a tire’s air pressure.

Overloading a car Colliding with a road hazard

Speeding on a worn road surface Cut or damaged tire

Under-inflated or overinflated tires Worn or uneven tread

Tread separation

Age-related deterioration

When a blowout happens, the driver’s response time is sometimes delayed while trying to figure out what’s going on. The driver must restore control of a car out of control and only has three wheels instead of four. The car wobbles, tremors, and becomes unstable until the driver puts it to a complete stop. It’s tough to maintain control, particularly at high speeds. Some cars veer into neighboring lanes, colliding with other cars. Others lose control altogether and tumble over before the momentum dissipates.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s research, Tire-Related Factors in the Pre-Crash Phase, Driver inexperience is a factor in effective car control, safety, and tire-related accidents. According to the organization, drivers with less than a year of driving experience are often unaware of maintaining a car, particularly its tires: tire care and tire pressure are often neglected by inexperienced drivers. Tire problems were a factor in around 12% of accidents involving novice drivers. Tire-related difficulties are involved in 4.8 per cent of accidents among other drivers.

ACCIDENT STATISTICS FOR BLOWOUTS

Tire blowouts cause rollovers and other severe accidents every year. The severity of injuries varies depending on the cars involved, their speeds, and the conditions immediately before and after the collision. Until the NHTSA made recent improvements in the method it collects tire-related accident data, blowout accident injury numbers were erroneous or incomplete.

According to 2017 statistics, 738 people died in tire-related accidents throughout the nation. No blowout-accident fatalities were reported in Colorado’s 2017 Traffic Crash Facts.

However, as the instances of recent accidents above illustrate, blowouts are common on Colorado highways. Rollover-related injuries are included in the Colorado traffic collision facts report. One hundred seventy-five fatalities, 912 incapacitating injuries, 1,836 non- incapacitating injuries, and 1,832 potential injuries were reported. While blowouts and other

tire troubles aren’t specified as the official cause, it’s plausible to assume that they had a role in at least some of the reported rollovers. Statistics should be used to better record blowout accidents in the future.

WHO IS LEGALLY LIABLE IN THE EVENT OF A BLOWOUT?

Accidents caused by blowouts are unavoidable. They are, nevertheless, generally avoidable, much like other accidents. Various people and organizations may cause a blowout accident and the injuries incurred by wounded victims.

THE OWNER OR DRIVER

The failure of a driver or owner to examine, repair, or replace a car’s tires is typically the cause of a blowout accident. When they contribute to an accident by failing to comply with recognized safety regulations, they are liable for the damages suffered by an injured person. By relying on an car specialist to execute the essential maintenance, drivers and owners may easily satisfy tire safety regulations.

TIRE MANUFACTURER

When a blowout occurs due to a tire manufacturer’s fault, Colorado’s Comparative Fault Statute, 768.81, permits a jury to consider the manufacturer’s responsibility when allocating damages. When an accident happens, however, car owners and drivers carry some responsibility. An owner may register their tire purchase to be included in a list of people notified about recalls and defects. During a normal examination, a driver may notice a flaw. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Safety Issues & Recalls webpage also has information on tire faults and recalls for drivers and owners. These steps may be taken to address car defect concerns before they result in an accident.

CAR MANUFACTURER

Beginning in 2007, federal rules mandated the installation of a tire pressure monitoring device in all new cars. By alerting a motorist when tire pressure is hazardous, the device minimizes the risk of a tire-related accident. If this device fails and leads to a blowout accident, the carmakers will be liable for the damages and casualties.

A GOVERNMENTAL OR LOCAL ENTITY

If a blowout accident is caused by a road hazard, the private property owner or the municipality in charge of maintaining the pavement or road may be held liable for the damages. Potholes, poor pavement, road construction waste, storm debris, and other factors may cause blowouts and tire damage. During a pavement-triggered blowout, however, driver error is often a problem. If a motorist drives slowly enough, they can safely traverse poor pavement conditions. 

The individual injured: A jury must lower an injured person’s payment by the proportion they were to blame for the accident if the defendants establish that the injured person’s activities contributed to their injury. Colorado uses a pure comparative negligence approach to determine guilt. Even if an injured individual is 90% at fault, they may recover 10% of their losses.

MEDICAL BILLS ARE COVERED IN FULL BY NO-FAULT BENEFITS.

If you are wounded in a blowout accident, your auto insurance provider is responsible for covering your medical expenses and other expenditures regardless of who is legally liable. Medical payments coverage benefits are the principal resource for accident-related expenditures under Colorado’s No-Fault Statute, 627.737. PIP benefits cover 80% of your medical expenses and 60% of lost income due to an accident-related disability. PIP also covers the cost of replacement services.

No-Fault coverage comes in first when a careless driver or other party causes your injuries. When your injuries fall within one of the tort exemptions listed in Colorado’s No-Fault Statute, 627.737, you may be eligible for non-economic damages. • A major and irreversible loss of a biological function • Permanent injury, barring scars and deformity

Significant scars or deformity that is permanent Death

If a tort exemption covers your injuries, you have the legal right to sue the person or individuals who caused them.

WHAT IS THE PROCESS FOR FILING A CLAIM AGAINST NEGLIGENT PARTIES?

If the motorist who caused the blowout has the appropriate liability insurance, they should contact their own insurance company to report the accident. Their claims department will look into it to find out the following details:

Is their insurance company legally liable for your losses?

Do your injuries fall under the no-fault tort exemptions in Colorado? What is the value of your claim?

The other driver’s insurance company may opt to pay your claim after you’ve completed your treatment for your accident-related injuries. Unless you or your legal representation commence settlement talks, an insurer is unlikely to make an offer. Some insurers may just shut your claim file and wait for you to leave.

HOW DO YOU FILE A LAWSUIT AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT?

 

You might have a legal claim against the municipality responsible for maintenance if a road danger or pavement condition contributed to the irresponsible driver’s blowout accident.

Suits brought against government institutions are protected by a legal doctrine known as sovereign immunity.

This implies that a government organization has no legal obligation to pay a liability claim; however, under Colorado Statute 768.28, municipalities have relinquished their immunity. You must submit a claim with the Colorado Department of Financial Services if you are injured. Damages are limited to $200,000 per individual and $300,000 per claim under this system.

WHAT IF LIABILITY INSURANCE DOESN’T COVER THE OTHER DRIVER?

You may be able to collect damages from your insurance carrier if a negligent driver does not have liability insurance. Your insurance company takes the role of the other driver’s liability insurance carrier if you have Underinsured Motorist coverage on your motor policy. They look at your claim from the standpoint of a liability carrier to see whether they owe you money for your losses.

Investigate your claim to assess responsibility.

Evaluate your losses to determine whether your claim qualifies for a tort exemption. Assess the extent of your losses.

Resolve your claim based on the responsible party’s exposure to responsibility.

Your Underinsured Motorist policy compensates part of the uninsured losses if the other driver has liability coverage but a low limit. In Colorado, uninsured and underinsured motorist coverages are optional. When you apply for No-Fault and Liability insurance, your insurance provider must offer these coverages, but you are not obligated to acquire them.

SHOULD YOU HANDLE YOUR INSURANCE CLAIM? NO.

Although dealing directly with an insurer is your prerogative, it is not always a wise choice. If you do, you should be aware that insurance firms are not always fair in their negotiations. An insurance company may provide you with a tiny portion of your claim’s genuine worth and propose that you collect extra monies from possible co-defendants if your claim contains complicated liability concerns, significant injuries, and other possibly liable parties. They appreciate that you may not completely comprehend the concerns and that you are eager to resolve them.

If you or another motorist files a product liability claim against a tire manufacturer, their insurance company may opt to negotiate a settlement or not. Manufacturers often attempt to evade liability for damages. If they admit to a product problem, it might injury their reputation and revenues in the future. Because they self-insure their product liability liabilities, manufacturers may accept modest settlements. The settlement money comes from its financial resources if they elect to pay a product claim.

When you attempt to manage an injury claim without legal help, it doesn’t always work out. Liability problems are often complex. If your injuries are severe, you’ll need assistance determining the worth of your claim and identifying the damages to which you’re entitled. Even if you have an inquiry, assessment, and negotiating expertise, it might be challenging.

If you subsequently decide to launch a lawsuit, your previous attempts might jeopardize your case. Before the statute of limitations expires, your attorney will have to research and examine your case.

SHOULD YOU SEEK LEGAL ADVICE FROM A PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY?

Do not attempt to handle a blowout accident claim on your own. To learn more about your legal possibilities, speak with a personal injury lawyer. An expert lawyer can help you understand the claims procedure. They may go into the details of the accident to see if you have a viable liability case against the motorist who caused it or another party.

Truck accident lawyers are familiar with recovery alternatives you may not be aware of. They may file lawsuits against tire manufacturers as well as government agencies. They can assess and negotiate matters in ways that result in the best potential settlements. An attorney can file a lawsuit on your behalf and manage your case from start to finish if you need to formalize your charges against the liable parties.

Warrior Car Accident Lawyers

1902 W. Colorado Ave., Suite 100

Colorado Springs, CO 80904

719-300-1100

Free Consultation

NO FEE UNLESS WE WIN

You May Also Like…