Defective Tires

Automakers, looking to make a quick buck, are still putting the almighty dollar ahead of driver safety. Even after the highly-publicized issue with Firestone tires back in 2000, manufacturers are trying to maximize profits by taking shortcuts in terms of design characteristics. Despite all the media coverage showing a correlation between negligent tire production and injuries and fatalities of the American consumer, safety does not appear to take precedence over sales numbers.

The latest example supporting this theory, detailed in the August 2007 publication of The Safety Record, describes the unethical dealings of New Jersey-based Foreign Tire Sales (FTS). The company, which imports tires from China, failed to investigate the inadequate product standards of its supplier, Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Company. Even worse, FTS was aware of the potential safety threats these tires posed to the public.

As early as 2004, a jump in damage claims caused FTS to show some concern to the Chinese tire-maker; the notion that temporary increases in profit would lead to lasting liability issues worried the company. FTS officials’ predictions rang true in 2006 when a rollover accident in Pennsylvania killed two occupants and left a third permanently brain damaged. It was later revealed that the accident, which involved a 2000 Chevrolet Express, was due to the fact that the supplier had chosen to no longer equip each tire with a gum strip--a basic yet vital safety feature. Although FTS was well aware of a problem, they maintain that Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber Company is ultimately responsible for the deaths.

It is difficult to fathom how faulty tires are still to blame for many an auto accident injury along with fatalities in the US. However, tires should not be the only cause for concern, as automobile manufacturers have found a variety of other ways to sacrifice safety in return for revenue.

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