What Causes a Tire Blowout? 

Driving along Florida’s coastal highways and scenic roads should be an enjoyable experience, but a tire blowout can turn it into a nightmare in seconds. These sudden and violent tire failures cause almost 11,000 crashes each year across the United States, resulting in more than 600 fatalities. Understanding what causes a tire blowout and what to do in the event of one could save your life. 

What is a Tire Blowout?

A tire blowout is a quick, explosive loss of air pressure that can affect your vehicle’s stability and handling. When a blowout happens, drivers usually experience: 

• A loud boom or bang, like an explosion
• An immediate hissing noise as air escapes
• Sudden deceleration as the vehicle loses momentum
• The vehicle pulling strongly toward the side of the blown tire

Blowouts are common and especially dangerous at highway speeds. This is concerning on Florida highways, where speed limits reach 70 mph and traffic is heavy. At these speeds, the heat generated by tire friction and the increased strain on tire components create perfect conditions for catastrophic failure.  

The risk becomes even more dangerous when a commercial truck experiences a blowout. A fully loaded 80,000-pound truck losing control due to a tire failure often requires the assistance from an experienced truck accident lawyer to thoroughly investigate and determine liability. 

Tire Blowout vs. Flat Tire

While many drivers might use these terms interchangeably, a tire blowout differs greatly from a flat tire. 

A flat tire can be caused by: 

• A puncture from a nail, glass, or other sharp objects
• A small leak around the valve stem
• Gradual air loss over hours or days

Flat tires are inconvenient, but they usually allow time for a driver to recognize the issue and safely pull over. Flat tires can often be repaired with a patch or plug. 

On the other hand, a blowout: 

• Happens suddenly and unexpectedly
• Involves immediate (and explosive) air loss
• Requires complete tire replacement
• Often leads to accidents due to loss of control

Common Causes of Tire Blowouts

Tire blowouts can be caused by a number of things, including underinflation or overinflation, wear and tear, road hazards, and manufacturer defects. Being aware of the signs can help you prevent blowouts and determine liability if you’re injured in an accident. 

Underinflation or Overinflation

Imbalanced tire pressure is a common and preventable cause of blowouts. In the case of underinflated tires: 

• More of the tire’s surface contacts the road
• The sidewalls overflex during driving
• Heat builds up more quickly in the tire
• Weak spots form, leading to air bursting through

Alternately, overinflation looks like: 

• The tire’s contact patch with the road narrows
• The center tread has excessive wear
• The tire becomes more vulnerable to impact damage
• The air inside expands further during driving

Florida’s climate can increase these risks. Our hot summer temperatures cause air inside tires to expand, potentially turning a slightly overinflated tire into a dangerously pressurized one. This is why tire manufacturers recommend checking pressure when tires are cold, or before they’ve been driven and heated up. 

Wear and Tear

Even properly inflated tires break down over time, making wear and tear another factor in blowouts. Florida law requires that tires must have a minimum tread depth of 2/32 of an inch. Driving with tread below this threshold is dangerous and negligent. 

You can check your tire tread by looking for built-in tread wear indicators (raised sections between treads) or perform a penny test. Insert a penny with Lincoln’s head facing down into the tread groove. If you can see above Lincoln’s head, your tires need to be replaced right away. 

To make your tires last longer: 

• Rotate tires every 5,000 miles for even wear 
• Never use tires more than six years old, regardless of appearance
• Inspect stored tires before using (especially important for seasonal residents)
• Sidewall cracking indicates structural deterioration and requires immediate attention

Road Hazards

Florida’s roads can be hazardous, triggering blowouts when you least expect them. Common road hazards include: 

• Potholes
• Construction debris
• Uneven road surfaces
• Nails, broken glass, and other sharp objects
• “Alligator cracking” in asphalt 

Road hazards may not immediately cause a tire blowout; however, they can weaken the tire structure enough to explode days or weeks later. When road conditions contribute to a blowout accident, liability could fall on construction companies that failed to secure an infrastructure project or even on other drivers who dropped debris on the roadway. 

Manufacturing Defects

While less common than the causes above, manufacturing defects are still a serious cause of blown-out tires. Common defects include: 

• Belt separation within the tire structure
• Poor bonding between rubber and steel components
• Defective materials that degrade prematurely
• Improper curing during the manufacturing process

Modern vehicles also have Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) that let drivers know when their tire pressure is off. When these systems are defective, it can lead to incorrect readings and give drivers a false sense of security, increasing the risk of over- or underinflation. 

Before purchasing tires, check their safety ratings through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). 

What To Do During a Tire Blowout 

If you experience a tire blowout, the NHTSA recommends following these steps: 

1. Hold the steering wheel firmly with both hands. 
2. Maintain your vehicle speed if possible and if it’s safe, as immediate braking can worsen the situation. 
3. Gradually release the accelerator to allow the vehicle to slow on its own. 
4. Correct your steering to stabilize the vehicle, looking where you want to go.
5. Once your vehicle has stabilized, carefully slow down and pull completely off the road when safe. 
6. Finally, put on your hazard lights to warn other drivers of your stopped vehicle. 

Determining Fault for a Tire Blowout Accident

Under Florida law, all drivers must operate their vehicles as a reasonable person would under similar circumstances. This includes maintaining safe tires. Failure to do so may constitute negligence, making the driver liable for damages. 

If you’re injured in an accident caused by another driver’s tire blowout, you may have a personal injury claim against that driver. However, liability may extend to other parties, including: 

• Mechanics who improperly installed or serviced tires
• Tire manufacturers, if defects contributed to the failure
• Retailers who sold inappropriate tires for the vehicle
• Government entities responsible for road maintenance 

In crashes involving commercial or employer-owned vehicles, the employer may be held liable under a negligent hiring or training theory. This applies when an employer fails to properly vet a driver’s qualifications or provides inadequate training that could then contribute to unsafe driving habits or poor vehicle maintenance. 

Because determining the at-fault party is nuanced, having an experienced car accident attorney is crucial after a blowout accident. Evidence about tire condition can be lost or destroyed if not preserved, and multiple potentially liable parties may attempt to shift blame. 

Does Insurance Cover Tire Blowout Accidents? 

Florida requires all registered vehicles to carry minimum insurance coverage of: 

• $10,000 in Personal Injury Protection (PIP)
• $10,000 in Property Damage Liability (PDL)

If you’re injured in a tire blowout accident caused by another driver, your PIP coverage will initially cover 80% of your medical expenses and 60% of lost wages, up to your policy limit. However, serious injuries can often exceed these limits. 

In cases involving serious injuries, you may pursue additional compensation from the at-fault party. Whether injuries are minor or severe, the person responsible for the blowout may be liable for expenses such as: 

• Medical bills (exceeding PIP limits)
• Lost wages (exceeding PIP limits)
• Property damage
• Pain and suffering
• Long-term care needs

Keep in mind Florida’s recent changes to its comparative negligence law: plaintiffs found more than 50% at fault cannot recover any damages. 

Contact Our Car Accident Law Firm in Gainesville, FL

Tire blowout accident cases can be complex in terms of establishing liability and securing fair compensation. That’s why the lawyers at Fine, Farkash & Parlapiano, P.A. work with tire experts and accident reconstruction specialists to build strong cases for our clients. 

If you’ve been injured in an accident involving a tire blowout, contact our Gainesville car accident attorneys today for a free, no-obligation consultation. We’ll evaluate your case, explain your legal options, and fight for the full compensation you deserve while you focus on recovery.  

Sources: 

Safety and Savings Ride on Your Tires | National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 

Maximum posted speed limits | Insurance Institute for Highway Safety 

Tire Safety | Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles 

Ratings | National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 

Tires | National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 

Florida Insurance Requirements | Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles 

Jack Fine

Mr. Fine was born in New York, New York, and was raised in the northeast, where he studied sociology at Colby College in Waterville, Maine. He then graduated with honors from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 1976. In law school, he was a member of Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, was inducted into the Order of the Coif, and graduated in the top 10 percent of his class. Mr. Fine was admitted into the Florida Bar in 1976, the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida in 1977, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida in 1991, and the United States Court of Appeals 11th Circuit in 1982.