This article appeared in the Best Rides website. The data from the research indicates that you are more likely to have a fatal car crash due to tie failure than from cell phone use. At the time I found the numbers hard to believe.
After some research, I found that the numbers in the article are accurate. The problem is how the data for motor vehicle traffic fatalities in which a contributing factor was tire malfunction, are recorded. The data varies in accordance with who is doing the data collecting.
This is an excerpt from an article which appears on the “Safety Research and Strategies” website –
“So how many people die each year in tire-related crashes? 200? 400? 700? It’s hard to get a grip on reality when your agendas inform your figures, rather than the other way around.”
According to the NHTSA, 476 people died while using Cell Phones – not to be mistaken for fatalities caused by distracted driving. Cell Phones are part of the total fatalities caused by distracted driving. So if you take the 700 number (which I believe is correct) the article is accurate – there are more traffic fatalities due to a tire failure that from cell phone use. Here is the link to the original article.
Why do tires fail?
The number one cause of tire failure is under-inflation. The number two cause is rapid and uneven tire wear. Read this article on the top causes of tire failure.
This should not need to be said BUT, as a Security Driver you MUST check tire pressures and wear daily. If you are company subcontracting a “Security Driver” you cannot assume the driver has conducted a tire check. One of the first questions you need to ask the driver before the boss gets in the vehicle. “What are the tire pressures, and when were they last checked”. Don’t accept “I checked the Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS) it’s OK”. For reference read the ISDA Article concerning TPMS.
Tire Pressure Monitoring Systems (TPMS)
The problem with TPMS is that the warning light on the instrument panel does not come on until there is a 25-percent drop in tire pressure. By the time the warning light is displayed, you and the passengers are in a very unsafe vehicle.