A wheel manufacturer, sentenced to compensate for damages arising from a tire explosion
For the first time in Spain, the justice system has declared the company that manufactured the tire that exploded, thus causing the accident, and the automobile company that sold the tire responsible for a traffic accident due to objective causes. The resolution, issued by the Provincial Court of Zaragoza, considers that it has been proven that the burst of the tire has its origin in its manufacture, of the Good Year brand, holding the United States multinational company responsible for the accident. and Nirvauto, the dealer who supplied the tire.
The accident took place on June 16, 2000 in a section of the N-II located between Alfajarín and Pina, characterized by being straight and without a slope. In this accident, the truck was traveling empty and at a speed of 90 kilometers per hour when it lost control after the sudden explosion of a tire, causing it to invade the opposite lane and the consequent multiple collision. The consequences were the driver's paraplegia and damages valued at almost two million euros.
Following the accident, the insurance company sued the driver and the company he works for, alleging they were responsible for the accident. However, the defendants, represented by lawyers Daniel Vosseler and Inma Texeira Ceró , filed a counterclaim against the tire manufacturer and the dealership that sold the truck's tractor unit. This counterclaim was based on the fact that the vehicle was only six months old and had only traveled 211 kilometers since its last service.
In this sense, the police report already stated that the cause of the accident could be mechanical failure, that is, what caused the tire to explode. This same possibility is what the expert report requested by Good Year and the expert report from the University Institute of Automobile Research (Insia) concluded. This second report specified that the manufacturing defect was located on the inside of the tire and that it had a determining influence on the explosion of the tire, being the position that the judicial expert also adopted when considering that there are no other defects or indications that lead to another cause.
Therefore, the Provincial Court of Zaragoza has declared the manufacturer and the seller of the product responsible for all damages resulting from a tire blowout due to a manufacturing defect. However, with regard to the seller, they will only be liable if they fail to inform the victim within three months who supplied the product.
Source: El Mundo
