Aging Tires make RVs more prone to causing Tampa car accidents

As baby boomers begin to retire in larger numbers, sales of recreational vehicles [RVs] have increased significantly. These RVs are increasingly equipped with all sorts of comforts of modern homes, which can include TVs, full kitchens and complete baths. These RVs are starting to resemble more like buses and many of them fall into the category of class A motor homes.
As the number of RVs on the road has increased, so have the number of Tampa auto accidents involving RVs. These accidents happen for all the usual reasons including drivers not paying attention and causing a rear end collision to the driver not obeying a traffic signal. But increasingly, the reason for the accident is a problem with the RVs’ tires. Tampa car accident injury attorneys will tell you that improper tires are an increasingly significant cause of accidents involving RVs, whether in Clearwater, Brandon, Pasco County, St. Petersburg or anywhere else in the Tampa Bay area.

One problem with RV tires is that while the RVs have grown in size over last several years, the RV manufacturers have not increased the size of the tires enough to accommodate the increased weight of the newer RVs. In 2006, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) issued a report that among other things, blames the manufacturers of RVs for increasing the weight of RVs without also increasing the RVs’ tire size. The NHTSA recommended the installation of larger tires, among other upgrades, so that the RVs can accommodate the new added weight.

It is surprising to learn that RV manufacturers spend very little time with their engineers in considering all the safety factors involved in driving such a large vehicle on our highways and roads. There are a lot less crash testing of RVs for safety issues compared with other vehicles such as cars and trucks.

Another problem with RV tires is age. In general, tire manufacturers say that tires should last approximately 10 years. But people note seeing deterioration in their tires in as little as five or six years. Reports of deterioration within this shorter period of time occur regardless of whether the tires are synthetic or rubber. This deterioration in the tires is not necessarily the result of driving on them, but can be just a matter of time and exposure to the elements. RV tires, because they're generally not used as much as tires on other types of vehicles are particularly susceptible to this type of problem. Without the usual wear and tear on the tread, RV owners are more likely to retain tires for very long periods of time.

To make matters worse, RVs are often driven under conditions that are more stressful to the driver than average. For example, they are most often driven during the summer and when people are on holiday so that the roads tend to be more crowded. They are also driven under the weight of significant loads with various things like luggage stored in all sorts of odd places. Also, the drivers may not be as familiar with driving a RV and large vehicles as they are a car or other types of transportation. In addition, the drivers are often unfamiliar with the roads that they are traveling on. Add to all this the possibility that one of the RVs’ overstressed tires suddenly blows out and you can see why tire blow outs on RVs can cause Tampa car accidents with very significant injuries.

To help prevent RV tire failures, it would be appropriate for RV owners to examine and check their tires at least once a year during a regularly scheduled maintenance check. During this check, consider checking your tires to make sure that they are properly inflated. You might also consider ask the RV manufacturer or dealer to upgrade the tires to ones more appropriate for your RV given its size and weight. RV owners should also consider replacing the tires sooner rather than waiting for the tread to wear thin or following the manufacturers stated number of years before replacement is necessary. And while the tire manufacturer may be a good source for information about when the tires are expected to deteriorate, it may make sense to ask other RV owners on the Internet for more precise details as to their experience with tire deterioration. Finally, when driving an RV, in order to help you avoid a Tampa car accident or other type of accident that causes serious injury, it's necessary to always be aware of these potential problems with RV tires. Anything can happen on the roads and it would be a shame to ruin your enjoyment of your RV by getting involved in a Tampa car accident that causes significant injuries.

If you continue to have any questions with regard to tires and operation of an RV, it's free to contact our firm to discuss the issues. If you know somebody that has been in a RV accident with injuries, please consider having them call us to discuss their rights.