Our Texas tire tread separation attorneys have discussed Goodyear’s recall of its Wrangler Silent Armor tires and some of the unique issues and dangers involved in tire tread separation accidents. News accounts attribute the Goodyear tire recall to a deadly Texas rollover wreck that occurred in August 2011.
The fatal rollover crash claimed the lives of two young Texans. Matthew Smith, 21, and Kerrybeth Hall, 18, were college students driving from their hometown of Port Lavaca, TX to Sul Ross University. They died when the front right tire on their Ford F-150 pickup truck experienced a tire tread separation. Loss of the tire tread led to a side skid (a typical result of tire tread separations) and suddenly left the roadway to end in a deadly rollover crash.
Goodyear has examined the tire associated with the fatal rollover crash. Reportedly, crash investigators on the scene of the wreck immediately identified tire tread separation as the cause of the crash. Goodyear does not seem to dispute this finding, but attributes the tread separation to “severe usage” and “external conditions.”
News reports on the fatal accident and Goodyear’s recall announcement do not extrapolate on what the company means by “severe usage” and “external conditions.” But high ambient temperatures, which increase the heat buildup in vulnerable, defective tires, are known to contribute to tire tread separation and resulting accidents.
When tread separation and resulting losses of vehicle control occur, the resulting wrecks and rollovers tend to prove more deadly at higher speeds. (But our Texas tire tread separation attorneys note that fatal rollover accidents from tire tread separation could occur at speeds as low as 20 mph.) So Goodyear may intend for interested parties to put the blame on the unusually hot 2011 Texas summer and carefree students driving at high speeds on their way to school.
But Goodyear will have a hard time shifting the blame on this one. By Goodyear’s own admission to federal authorities, the company had received an unusually large number of warranty claims and property damage claims from the defective Wrangler Silent Armor tires as early as March 2010. That means the company knew, or had reason to know, that there was a problem with the tires.
The attorney for the Smith family is questioning Goodyear’s delay in acknowledging the problem with the tires and issuing a recall. He wonders whether the two young people’s lives could have been saved had Goodyear acted sooner to recall the defective tires.
Sadly, such delay is not unusual among tire manufacturers, including Goodyear. Tire manufacturing is a complex, multi-layered activity, and even manufacturers and their engineers can’t always spot the source of the problem with compromised, defective tires. So tire manufacturers will try to ignore problems and hope to shift the blame, or issue “silent recalls” rather than public ones, where they privately notify registered owners of the products. But ownership changes through sale, and many owners never register, so this practice doesn’t reach everyone in danger from a defective tire.
The attorney for the Smiths also points out that Goodyear restricts its recall of the Wrangler Silent Armor tire to a few sizes of tire and a 13-week period of manufacture. If this means that they have identified the precise source of the tire defect, they should notify concerned motorists. If they haven’t identified the real source of the defect, then many motorists might remain in danger from defective tires missed by the recall.
It’s unknown how many people are currently in danger on Texas roads and highways from hidden tire defects. If you’re injured in a rollover accident resulting from a tire tread separation, get the knowledgeable legal help you’ll need to hold the tire manufacturer accountable for the dangerous tire defect.
Contact the Texas tire tread separation attorneys at Denena & Points for a free legal consultation and case evaluation. We could pinpoint the complex issues you face in bringing your injury claim and gather the technical evidence you need to prove your case against the tire manufacturer. Hold the manufacturer accountable for the hidden defect that harmed you and your family.
Don’t let big manufacturers get away with leaving you in danger. Act now. Contact us for your free consultation. We could answer your questions regarding tire defect accidents and claims, and help you obtain the financial compensation you deserve because of the needless harm you’ve suffered because of the manufacturer’s actions and inaction.