Most collisions in San Francisco involving cars, trucks and SUVs are the result of drivers who are negligent. This negligence may take the form of violating traffic safety laws, driver inattention or otherwise unsafe driving conduct. However, there are other motor vehicle collisions in the Bay Area that are caused by defective vehicle maintenance or defective vehicle equipment. Tire blowouts because of inadequate tire maintenance or defective tires may cause many serious San Francisco car accidents. We have provided an overview of some basic tire maintenance issues below that may cause a serious San Francisco auto accident:
Placement of New Tires: Many people think that when two new tires are purchased that they should go on the front of the vehicle. The safest placement, if you are only able to purchase two new tires at a time, is to have them installed on the rear of the vehicle. It is the rear tires on a car that provide vehicle stability, which is essential for safe braking and maneuvering. If the new tires are placed in the rear the back end of the vehicle is likely to skid when the brakes are applied and spin around causing a car accident, especially on a slick roadway.
Reliance on Vehicle Tire Pressure Monitoring: Although a fair number of new motor vehicles come equipped with a Tire Pressure Monitoring System (TPMS), these systems are not an accurate indicator of whether your tire pressure is safe. These systems do not alert a driver until the tire pressure is 25 percent below the tire pressure recommended by the manufacturer of the vehicle. These are last resort systems designed to warn a driver of an imminent risk of a tire blowout. Tire pressure should be independently monitored because under-inflated tires can result in improper tire wear and adversely impact the handling of the vehicle.
Under-Inflation and Over-Inflation of Tires: When tires are under-inflated, the pressure exerted on the sidewalls is increased, which causes the tires to become overheated particularly at high rates of speed and hot temperatures. Tires that are over-inflated may increase the risk of damage to a tire from an impact with curbs or potholes.
Tire Defects: When tires are not manufactured properly, the adhesive bond between the tire tread and steel belts may fail. The process of bonding the tread must be done properly or the tread may separate from the steel belts particularly at higher rates of speed or high temperatures.
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If you are injured in a San Francisco auto accident, our experienced San Francisco accident attorneys at Zimmerman Law may be able to help. If you or someone you love has been injured or a loved one has died in a San Francisco auto collision, you should contact us as soon as possible because critical deadlines apply. We invite you to contact The Law Office of Ian Zimmerman for your free initial consultation. We are open 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., speak Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese, and are available for weekend, evening, home and hospital meetings and visits. We also offer free initial consultations and work exclusively on a contingency fee basis so that you pay nothing if we don’t win your case.