What Happens If Your Car Accident Was Caused By A Tire Blowout?
Being involved in a car accident is a frightening experience for everyone involved. The repercussions of a car accident can be long-lasting ranging from physical injuries to property damage to increasing your insurance rates. However, it can be especially frustrating for a typically safe driver to be involved in a car accident through no fault of their own but because of a tire blowout.
If you were injured or others were harmed because of an accident caused by a tire blowout you should speak to a Dallas car accident lawyer as soon as possible to find out what rights and responsibilities you may have. Fill out our contact form to get started.
Why Did Your Tire Blowout?
A tire blowout usually occurs when there has been tread separation, or when the rubber tread layer of the tire separates from the rest of the tire. Some of the more common causes of a tire blowout are:
- Debris: litter, gravel or other items on the road caused your tire to puncture.
- Overloading: packing a vehicle with too much weight can overload the tires making them blowout.
- Leak: there was a small leak in your tire that eventually led to a blowout.
- Poor Road Maintenance: potholes and an overall lack of road maintenance can damage your tires causing them to blowout.
- Air Pressure: if the air pressure in your tires is incorrect it can lead to a blowout as well.
As you can see, there are many different ways that your tire can blowout leading to a car accident. Accidents caused by tire blowouts can be tricky because it can be difficult to figure out who exactly is at fault for the accident. Speaking to a car accident lawyer in Dallas can help reduce some of your concerns about who may be at fault and what the next steps moving forward will be.
Dallas Negligence Laws and Car Accidents
When it comes to car accidents in general, the law that will most likely apply is negligence laws. The person that will be responsible for any injuries or damages is the person that was negligent in causing the accident. To show that a particular person or organization was negligent there are four elements that must be met:
- Duty of Care
- Breach
- Causation
- Damages
The first element, a duty of care, means that the negligent party owed a duty of care to the injured party. Generally, people are under a duty of care to act as a reasonable person under similar circumstances. So drivers are under a duty of care to act as a reasonable driver under similar driving circumstances.
The second element, breach, means that the duty of care was not fulfilled by the negligent party. So, for a car accident it would mean that the driver did not act like other reasonable drivers on the road would have acted.
The third element of causation requires both actual and proximate cause. Actual cause means that the damage would never have happened but for the other person’s actions. Proximate cause means that there was no other intervening, unforeseeable action in between the negligent person’s conduct and the accident. For example, even if a driver is being negligent but then a tree falls into the road causing your accident then the other driver cannot be held liable.
Lastly, there has to be damages that happened because of the negligence. In a car accident this will most likely be physical injuries to passengers and any damage to the vehicle.
Responsibility for Tire Blowout
Considering that there are several different ways in which a tire can blowout, there are also several different parties that may be responsible for the accident. When the accident happened because of a tire blowout then the negligent party could be driver of the car with the tire blowout, the driver of a different vehicle, the tire manufacturer or even the local government. Here are a few scenarios showing how different groups could be responsible for a car accident caused by a tire blowout:
- You – in some scenarios, the driver of the car with the blowout can be held responsible if the blowout happened because of that person. For example, if you did not properly maintain your air pressure in your tires then you could be at fault for the accident.
- Another Driver or Passenger – another vehicle and its occupants may be responsible if you can show that it was their debris that caused your tire to blowout.
- Tire Manufacturer – if the tire was defective then you may have a products liability claim and the manufacturer can be found negligent.
- Government – if the blowout happened because of poor road maintenance then the local municipality may be responsible but this can be difficult as many government departments are immune or have limited liability.
Contact a Dallas Car Accident Lawyer Today!
Regardless of whether you are being blamed for an accident or suffered because another car had a tire blowout, you should speak to a car accident lawyer in Dallas immediately. Your lawyer can evaluate your case for free and provide you with valuable information. Working with a lawyer you can find out what your options are including settling with an insurance company or going to court.
Call now at (469) 998-4069 and speak to a lawyer about your car accident.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What to Expect Physically After a Car Accident
- Are Distracted Driving Accidents In Texas Increasing With Cell Phone Usage?
- What Is the Statute of Limitations for Auto Accidents in Texas?
- Can I Sue Public Transportation if I Am Involved in a Bus Accident?
- What Can Injury Victims Sue For In A Typical Dallas Rear End Collision?