The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported as of 2012 that more than 400 people have been killed annually as a result of blowout and flat tires. In addition, blowout and flat tires cause approximately 78,300 car accidents every year in the United States.

A tire may blow out when there is not enough air pressure in the tire. This allows the tire to stretch beyond what it is capable of holding, to the point that it is no longer bonded to the internal fabric and steel cord reinforcement. One article stated that, “While we know that too little air pressure is a cause of tire blowouts, what causes the air pressure to decrease? There are some common reasons as to why your tires can blow out”, these include “defectively manufactured tires, heat, potholes, slow leaks, under inflation, and worn treads.” In order to reduce your chances of experiencing a tire blowout it is important that you take care of your vehicle by way of routine inspections maintenance and tire rotations. By way of routine inspections you can learn of any leaks, pressure inefficiencies and other wear and tear issues with your tires and work toward fixing the problem before anything happens.

When asked to comment on what should be done if an individual experiences a tire blowout one expert stated, “Firstly, it is important to realize that whether we like it or not, tire blowouts do happen. However, when we travel at high speeds it is extremely important to know exactly what to do. If it happens that your tire blows out while you're travelling at high speeds on the highway you should grip the steering wheel with both hands and resist the urge to slam your foot down on the brakes. Take your foot off the gas pedal in order to allow the car to slow down naturally. Thereafter, allow your car to roll towards the side of the road or the nearest exit and do not remain in traffic. Once you are off the road place your foot lightly on the brakes until the vehicle comes to a complete stop. Turn on your emergency flashers. While you're waiting for help to arrive ensure that you are on the side of your car furthest from moving traffic and stay a safe distance away. Tire blowouts easily cause accidents at the point of the blowout where the driver does not know how to react and while waiting for assistance by failing to remove one’s vehicle out of the road completely.”

A Crowson Law Group attorney who was asked about who is likely liable for a tire blowout, he commented – “Determining liability for a tire blowout is based on whether you as the driver failed to meet your duty and properly care for your vehicle and its tires or whether it was as a result of a product defect such as defective design, manufacturing or marketing. Design defects are defects in which the blueprint of the product makes it dangerous and therefore each and every product made is defective, manufacturing defects are when the product is not made as per the predetermined plan and marketing defects happen when the product is labelled incorrectly or does not have adequate safety instructions or labelling. If it can be proven that the design, manufacturing or marketing defects were the cause of the blowout then it is appropriate to find one of the top lawyers in Anchorage Alaska handling car accident personal injury cases.” 

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