A tire detread is not a tire blow-out. In almost all cases, blowouts do not occur because of a tire manufacturer’s negligence. Conversely, a detread is rarely the fault of the vehicle owner. A detread accident can cause very serious injury and even death. Someone involved in a detread accident and someone related to someone involved in a detread accident may have a claim under civil law for the resulting damages of a detread accident. No person involved in such an accident would immediately think about a lawyer. And, healing from physical and personal wounds takes time. But, hopefully sooner than later, the affected individuals will begin to think of their rights under the law.
With or without a lawyer, a potential plaintiff should preserve as much evidence as possible. The vehicle and its tires, including the detreaded tire, must be preserved. This evidence is vital to the prosecution of any case against a defendant for causing the detread accident. Insurance companies typically store the vehicle while it works on the claim. But, when the claim closes, the insurance company will sell the vehicle for salvage, eliminating an opportunity to advance a lawsuit, because vital evidence is now lost. Instead, a potential plaintiff should ensure the vehicle is stored, both during and after a claim. Likewise, all tires must be preserved with the vehicle.
Police officers who responded to the detread accident typically preserve any tread that was located around the accident. But, too many times, they do not. Without the tread that separated from the tire, a forensic tire expert is denied vital information to complete his analysis. All tread pieces from the accident scene must be preserved.
A potential plaintiff must keep the contents in the vehicle’s glove compartment. Many drivers use their glove compartment as storage for an insurance card, title, inspection and maintenance receipts, etc. These documents are important for the early development of a case and may be crucial in proving it. Likewise, a potential plaintiff should attempt to locate and preserve all maintenance records for the detreaded vehicle. Maintenance records help re-construct a calendar of events that assist in the creation of the tire’s biography.
Of particular concern when tracing the tire’s life is the last 12 months. The owner of the subject vehicle should know if any maintenance was performed on the vehicle within the last 12 months before the accident. Even if a receipt for vehicle maintenance was thrown away, the person who paid for the service can request a copy of the receipt from the company that performed the maintenance. These receipts are important because they reveal the identity of every person or company that touched or should have touched the subject tire before it failed, possibly illuminating a Defendant.
Tires should never detread. They are designed to roll without incident, until the tread is worn to the wear-bar. If a tire loses its tread during operation, it is the result of a long migration of air from a latent separation created during the manufacturing process. Absent extraordinary user abuse, a tire detread is the result of a tire manufacturer’s negligence.
Written by:
Guy L. Watts, II
Watts Guerra LLP
4 Dominion Drive, Bldg 3, Suite 100
San Antonio, Texas 78257
Phone (210) 447-0500
© Watts Guerra LLP 2015
