Defective Tire Lawyers in San Jose
Serving Silicon Valley and All of Northern California
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), approximately 8,000 injury motor vehicle accidents happen every year as a result of tire failures. A significant percentage results from defective installation or manufacturing or maintenance. If you have suffered as a result of a defective tire, schedule your free case review with a member of our team.
Call our firm at (800) 900-0863 today!
A Brief Primer on Types of Tire Defect Accidents
Explosions
An exploding tire can cause a vehicle to veer off the road into oncoming
traffic. Common causes of explosion include:
- Failures of the bead wire
- Failure of a multi-piece wheel
- So-called "zipper" failures
A bead failure can occur when you overfill a tire. A weak wire can suddenly fail to contain the outward pressure and set off a catastrophic explosion, resulting in injuries to the person inflating the tire as well as to bystanders.
Multi-piece wheel accidents have been linked to many injuries and death, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which at one point attempted to ban these rims altogether. Zipper failures - also known as sidewall failures - also occur often during inflation of tires. They are known as "zipper" failures because the sidewall blowout looks like an unzipped zipper after the explosion.
Belt and tread separations
Because it's so hard to get rubber to adhere to steel, tires can often come apart under certain circumstances. For instance, if you drive in very hot weather at high velocities, the treads can separate and the tires can catastrophically fail.
A myriad of factors can provoke tread or belt separation, including:
- Poor manufacturing
- Use of improper solvents
- Careless inspection of the tires
- Impurities "cured" into the tire
- Shoddy machining processes
Building a Case for Just Compensation
To construct an effective case against the manufacturer, maintainer, or distributor of a tire that catastrophically failed, you must link the tire's failure to your injuries and other harm. Not every case of tire failure will be grounds for a lawsuit or a claim. And your San Jose auto product liability attorney will likely need to launch a sophisticated investigation and get the opinions of experts in metallurgy, motor vehicle crash reconstruction, biochemistry, and vehicular dynamics.
Note that tire defect accident cases can get extremely complicated, and they may involve multiple claims from parties spread out geographically and over time. Class actions against Ford Motor Company and Bridgestone / Firestone in connection with a 14.4 million tire recall in 2000 led to years of litigations, for instance.
To keep matters simple, effective, and efficient, you want a team of San Jose defective tires lawyers who understands how to craft powerful and results driven claims.
Our lawyers at Caputo & Van Der Walde LLP have more than 85 years of combined experience specifically dealing with personal injury cases in California, and we can provide a zero obligation, free case evaluation.
A TRACK RECORD OF SUCCESS
Millions Recovered for Our Clients-
Wrongful Death Skydiving Accident $40,030,000
Attorney Paul Van Der Walde recovered a total of $40,030,000 in compensation for a couple bereft of their 18-year-old son in a tandem skydiving accident.
-
School Bus vs. Pedestrian Accident $8,825,000
School bus vs. pedestrian accident resulting in traumatic brain injury.
-
Train Maintenance Vehicle vs. Auto $7,411,492
Caputo & Van Der Walde received a jury verdict in the amount of $7,411,492 for a surviving widow, who lost her husband when his pickup truck was involved in a collision with an on-track maintenance of way vehicle.
-
3rd-Degree Burns During a Pedicure $7,291,986
Paul Caputo received a $7,291,985.58 decision for Plaintiff in a case where a client received severe 3rd-degree burns during a pedicure, resulting in the need for numerous skin grafting procedures.
-
Paraplegia from Defective Seat $5,650,000
Product liability case involving a defective seat design that resulted in paraplegia.
-
Pick-up Truck vs. Pedestrian Accident $4,250,000
Pedestrian crossing a four-lane street in the crosswalk, hit by a full-size pick-up truck. Injuries included a left knee dislocation with complete tears of all ligaments and requiring surgery, right scaphoid fracture requiring surgery, right shoulder AC joint separation with clavicle fracture and PTSD.
-
Auto vs. Bicycle Accident $4,000,000
Bicycle rider attempted to maneuver to his left, around a recessed manhole in the bike lane, and was struck by a vehicle that was driving too closely to the bike lane. Significant injuries included traumatic brain injury, skull fracture, and permanent brain damage.
-
Big Rig vs. Auto Accident $3,000,000
Big rig vs. auto accident resulting in wrongful death.
-
Physical Abuse $3,000,000
Child protective services failed to adequately protect young child from physically abusive foster parents.
-
Injury Onboard a SCTVA Bus $3,000,000
Injury onboard a SCTVA bus resulting in Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS).
Client Testimonials
Highly Rated & Reviewed-
“I am happy with the outcome and highly recommend Caputo and Van Der Walde to anyone seeking an injury lawyer.”
- Karen B -
“Our lawyer and his entire staff were extremely approachable and effective in getting a very good settlement from my own insurance company's under-insured motorist coverage. Our lawyer guided my husband and me through the process.”
- Chris G. -
“Paul has a great understanding of people's rights and drives to obtain all that is due to you. He listens and answers questions that anyone could understand without legalize. I contacted him through the recommendation of a friend.”
- Gary G.