Negligent Inspection Leads to Tire Blowout, Death of a 16-Year-Old Boy
A 16-year-old boy was a passenger in his friend’s vehicle on I95 in Miami-Dade County when the left rear tire on the vehicle failed. The driver, passenger, and other occupants exited the vehicle to attempt to push it out of the travel lanes when they were struck from behind by a passing vehicle. Both the driver and passenger were killed.
The family of the deceased 16-year-old passenger hired Clark, Fountain, Littky-Rubin & Whitman to determine what caused the incident and their son’s death. Attorney Ben J. Whitman was able to identify a used tire store/service facility that had performed an inspection on the vehicle and tires and also sold the two tires on the front axle of the vehicle to the driver.
Even though the failed tire was not sold by the facility, Whitman filed a lawsuit and sent a demand to the facility’s insurance company arguing that the tire store/service facility had an obligation to inspect every tire on the vehicle and warn the owner that the rear tires were unsafe. Despite previously denying the claim, the insurance company agreed to pay the full insurance policy, which will provide financial security to the surviving parents.