Cooper | Tire Failure

Findlay, Ohio-based Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. has been a target of lawsuits in recent years for allegedly endangering American consumers with defective tires for both commercial trucks and passenger vehicles.

Tires from Cooper Tire and other tire producers such as Goodyear, Continental, Michelin, and Bridgestone are allegedly  the primary cause for hundreds of accidents each year, injuring and killing scores of individuals.

Road accidents involving large commercial trucks are particularly dangerous and regularly result in serious injuries. Truck tires from well-known tire companies like Cooper Tires may be responsible for hundreds of serious accidents each year, and must be held responsible for producing Tire malfunction.

Joe Lyon is a highly-rated Ohio product liability lawyer, with years of experience investigating the causes of serious auto accidents, and settling accident claims nationwide.

Recent Cooper Tire Recalls

• Cooper Tire & Rubber recalled Roadmaster RM234 tires in 2015 because the tires may have small holes in the sidewall which can cause sudden tire failure. Also in 2015, Cooper Tire & Rubber recalled the Cooper Zeon LTZ tires.
• In 2014, the Cooper Tire & Rubber Company recalled their Wild Country Radial XTX Sport tires, which may experience cracking and broken ply cords in the lower sidewall on the intended outboard side above the rim, increasing the risk of a tire blowout.
• In 2011 and 2012, Cooper recalled several tire models including the Cooper Discoverer, Cooper Mastercraft Courser, the Del-Nat Delta A/S, Del-Nat National A/S Commando, Pep Boys Definity Dakota, and TBC Sigma Stampede. The company stated that contaminated rubber may have been used in the tread compound, which could result in tread separation, increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
• In 2010, Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. recalled their Cyclone Radial Tires, which failed to conform to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard requirements. The company reported that at various mileages, the subject tires developed and exhibited tread chunking or cracking. Tread chunks may separate from the tire casing resulting in body damage to the vehicle, and loss of vehicle control.
• In 2006, Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. recalled 288,000 tires used on passenger cars and light trucks because of concerns about slow leaks and cracking.
• Roughly 183,000 defective Cooper tires manufactured in 2004 were recalled because of a slow leak caused by a contamination problem in the upper sidewall of some tire models.

Preventing Tread Separation & Tire Failures

There has been extensive tread belt separation litigation involving tire producers, including defective Cooper Tires, and other manufacturers like Uniroyal-Goodrich, Michelin, Goodyear, Bridgestone-Firestone and Continental.

Tread belt separations frequently cause tire blowouts, and resulting Defective Tire Treads accidents can be deadly. Even if a defective tire does not lose pressure the driver may lose control of the vehicle, collide with other vehicles or roll over.

Some tire design problem can be corrected by using proper wedges and cushions at the belt edges, and a nylon overlay design modification. Nylon overlays can eliminate tread separations unless the tire has a significant design or manufacturing defect.

It is proven that nylon overlays can substantially delay failure. Other manufacturing defects can be substantially reduced by appropriate adhesion, proper manufacturing practices, and adequate quality control measures.

Common Types of Tire Defects and Failure

Tread separation, the most common defect that demands a tire recall, relates to steel-belted radial tires when the steel components do not properly adhere to the rubber.

When the adhesion fails it can result in a catastrophic tire failure. Tread separation incidents are linked to defective production or design problems. If tires are poorly designed or manufactured, the tires are at risk of tread separation and other failures. Other types of tire failures include:

•    Tire tread separation
•    Tire blowouts
•    Unsafe tire design
•    Adhesion defects
•    Manufacturing defects
•    Insufficient resistance to aging
•    Material contamination—foreign materials are sometimes unintentionally cured into tires
•    Corroded steel components
•    Tires do not meet road safety specifications
•    Company officials misleading outside safety inspectors

Common Road Accident Injuries

Thousands of automobile and truck drivers are at risk on America’s roads when tire producers fail to manufacture safe products and do not adhere to normal safety standards set or by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Common truck and auto accident injuries include:

•    Orthopedic Injuries
•    Rollover Injuries
•    Deceleration/whiplash injuries
•    burn accident
•    Neck & Spinal Injury
•    Brain Injury

Compensation for Victims of Defective Cooper Tires

Legal action is often necessary after serious road accidents because, unfortunately, unless a person is gravely injured or killed, it is difficult to file claims against companies like Cooper Tire and other manufacturers of defective tires.

Consumers and victims should document their accident and contact an experienced attorney to take appropriate measures. Cooper and other tire producers have been sued in recent years, resulting in very large settlements and rightful compensation for accident victims.

In 2013, a jury verdict ruled against Cooper Tire in a fatal tread separation accident and awarded $31.3 million in actual damages and another $1.5 million in punitive damages. Soon after the ruling, the Cooper Tire & Rubber Co. agreed to settle dozens of other lawsuits over tread separation claims.