Truck Tire Blowouts – Who is Responsible?

Truck Tire Blowouts – Who is Responsible?

Truck Tire blowouts are as frightening as they are dangerous. When it comes to who is responsible for these life-threatening truck accidents, the truck’s manufacturer, the trucking company that owns the rig, and the truck driver can all play a role.

Truck accidents are terrifying events that are also exceedingly dangerous. Truck tire blowouts are often the impetus behind these crashes. 18-wheelers safely keep traction with the road by their tires, and when one or more blows out, a driver can lose control. If you’ve been injured by a truck tire blowout, don’t delay consulting with an experienced Mcpherson, Kansas attorney. 

When a Truck’s Tire Blows Out

If you do much driving at all, you’ve witnessed a truck’s tire blowing out, and it’s frightening, to say the least. The semis that share our roads put a lot of miles behind them, and this means their tires do a lot of the heavy lifting, which is exactly why they must be maintained in excellent working condition. When a truck loses a tire to a blowout, it makes the massive vehicle far more difficult for the truck driver to control safely.

Why do truck tires blow out? 

Because compressed air in a tire finds an exit point where it explosively exits. A tire blowout is sudden, but modern vehicles have safety features that should still make it easy to control your vehicle even with a blown-out tire. However, there are other occasions when this is not possible, and a tire blowout can result in an accident causing serious injuries or even death.

What Causes Truck Tires Blowouts?

There are many causes of tire blowouts, but here are the most common:

• Punctures. If you run over a nail, for example, you may not immediately notice anything wrong with the affected tire. However, over a period, and in some cases over months of driving the truck with the nail perched on the tire, air continually seeps from the tire, causing wear on the sides of the tire. When this happens, the tire will ultimately blow out unless the nail is removed and fixed.
• Low Air. You are supposed to check your air in tires regularly to make sure it is at the recommended levels. If a tire has low air, it will soon wear on the sides, and just as in the case of a nail, this wear will ultimately cause a blowout. Fortunately, newer trucks and cars have the technology to warn when a tire’s air needs to be checked as opposed to older models in which the air level must be checked manually.
• Road Damage. Besides potholes, there are all kinds of debris on the road that are enemies of tires. A pothole can as easily cause a tire blowout as much as running over a sharp object on the road. This is particularly the case when you are driving on old and worn-out tires.
• Old and Defective Tires. Old or defective tires are blowouts waiting to happen. An old or defective tire is susceptible to blowout especially if you are driving on them and run over a sharp object such as glass or nail. 

How to avoid truck tire blowouts?

There are several things you can do to avoid tire blowouts, including the following:

• Tire Inspection. Inspect your tires regularly to make sure they have no nails gorged in them and to make sure they are not defective in any way. Check tire pressure, especially when temperatures are extreme because extremely cold temperatures can cause air condensation in the tire, while extremely hot temperatures can cause the air in the tire to expand. 
• Tire Rotation and Replacement. You should rotate your tires as recommended by your tire manufacturer and replace old or worn-out tires as soon as possible. The best practice is not to wait until the tires are worn out to replace them, but you should replace them as recommended by the tire manufacturer. A new set of good tires should typically last between 50,000 to 70,000 miles.
• Weight. All vehicles have weight restrictions. Make sure you do not overload your truck because if you do, this can result in a tire blowout. Your truck is particularly susceptible to tire blowout because of being overloaded if one or more tires are old or worn out. There are many ways you can easily check for worn-out tires and have them replaced immediately.

Who Is Responsible for the truck tire blowout?

When a truck’s tire blows out, the responsibility typically lies with one (or more) of the following entities:

• The Truck Tire blowouts Manufacturer – The manufacturer of the truck tires is responsible for making tires according to safe designs, using durable materials, and ensuring there are no manufacturing flaws in the finished tire. The job that a semi’s tire must perform is intense, and the tire’s manufacturer is well aware of this fact and owes a duty of care to the purchaser of said tires.
• The Trucking Company – The trucking company is responsible for maintaining a road-worthy fleet of trucks, which includes ensuring that each and every rig has tires that are in good condition for the ride ahead. This involves implementing a maintenance and safety-check schedule that comports with industry standards and ensuring said schedule is closely adhered to. 
• The Truck Driver – The truck driver himself or herself is responsible for keeping a close eye on the rig throughout the trip, and this includes carefully checking the tires for wear or defect at all scheduled stops and safety checks. 

When it comes to commercial truck tire blowouts, getting to the bottom of who’s responsible is often complicated, but it’s also an important component of your truck accident claim.

Types of Collisions Due to Tire Blowouts

A tire blowout can lead to a number of different kinds of truck accidents. Some of the most common types of crashes will include:

• Rollover crashes
• Head-on collins
• Rear-end collisions
• T-Bone, broadside, or side-impact accidents
• Single-vehicle accidents
• Sideswipe accidents
• Jackknife accidents

What Damages Can You Seek After a Tire Blowout Crash?

In a truck accident claim in Kansas, insurance companies will usually push to settle cases rather than allow them to go to trial. Even settlements are going to be a calculation of all the different damages that a victim needs and deserves.

Damages are a combination of economic damages and non-economic damages. Economic damages refer to the kinds of losses that have specific dollar values and can be proven and calculated, while non-economic damages are much more subjective and are subject -5to the interpretation of a jury.

Common kinds of economic damages include medical bills, lost wages, and property damage. Non-economic damages often include pain and suffering, emotional distress, and disability or disfigurement.

The third kind of damages in a very limited number of cases is punitive damages, which K.S.A. § 60-3703 establishes that first requires an application to the trial court for permission to recover. To recover punitive damages, a plaintiff will have to prove by clear and convincing evidence that a party’s actions involve willful conduct, wanton conduct, fraud, or malice.

How Do You Collect the Damages You Deserve?

In many defective tire claims, a person will be dealing with the truck’s insurance company, and insurers will try to minimize the amounts people receive because the primary concern for all insurance companies is their own bottom lines. You will want to have an attorney negotiate a settlement with an insurance company on your behalf because people who attempt to handle these claims on their own often say things that insurance companies later use against them as reasons for reducing settlement amounts or denying claims entirely.

When negotiations fail to produce an appropriate settlement amount, then a victim may have to file a lawsuit in civil court. The party the lawsuit is going to involve will vary on the particular circumstances of your case, as you may be using a truck driver, a trucking company, a tire manufacturer, a mechanic, or a government agency.

The Importance of an Experienced Truck Accident Lawyer

It is incredibly important to get an experienced attorney to help you with any kind of defective tire claim as soon as possible because they are going to be able to do a number of things that you cannot do for yourself. The first thing that a lawyer will do is conduct their own independent investigation into your crash to figure out exactly what went wrong with a tire and who could be liable for the accident, and the attorney may also consult with various crash experts for guidance in these cases.

When the lawyer knows who the liable party is, they can then begin the process of obtaining financial compensation from that party. Settlement negotiations can take a significant amount of time, so you should know that it may be weeks or months before an insurance company for a negligent party becomes willing to adequately compensate you.

Most importantly, an attorney is going to speak to you to really get a good handle on the effects your accident has on you, so you can be confident that the lawyer will work to recover an amount that truly covers every single expense you will be facing because of your crash. Attorneys are very familiar with defective tire claims, so they will have the benefit of previous experience being able to help guide them on the most effective ways to handle your own claim.

Seek an Experienced Kansas Truck  Tire Blowouts Accident Attorney Today 

When a truck’s tire blows out, it is a frightening event that puts everyone on the roadway at an increased risk of being injured in a truck accident. If you’ve been injured by a truck tire blowout, the focused and committed truck accident attorneys at Pyle Law in Kansas to have impressive experience guiding cases like yours toward favorable resolutions that support our clients’ best interests. We are here to help you, so please don’t hesitate to contact us online or call us at 620-374-9299 for more information today.