Driving a automobile with defective tools, reminiscent of bald tires or damaged headlights, can improve your possibilities of inflicting a visitors accident. Insurance coverage corporations can discover out what situation your automobile was in earlier than an accident by consulting a number of sources. If you happen to don’t preserve your car appropriately and have a wreck, your insurer might deny your declare, citing negligence.

Why the Insurance coverage Firm May Deny Your Declare

Driving a automobile with bald, broken, or underinflated tires is harmful and might result in visitors accidents. Defective tires may cause blow-outs, which may result in crashes. In accordance with the Nationwide Freeway Visitors Security Administration, tire-related visitors accidents alone account for nearly 11,000 crashes annually, leading to greater than 600 fatalities. If a blow-out happens once you’re touring at a excessive velocity, you possibly can lose management of the automobile, threatening the lives of you, your passengers, and different motorists. 

Automobile upkeep is a mandatory expense that goes hand in hand with car possession. If you happen to fail to maintain up with automobile upkeep, your insurance coverage firm may deny a declare in case you are concerned in a visitors accident.

“As a result of an insurance coverage coverage primarily acts like a contract between the insurance coverage firm and the policyholder, the policyholder has sure tasks, which embrace sustaining their automobile,” mentioned Ted Olson, a vp at Goosehead Insurance coverage.

“If the policyholder fails to take care of their automobile correctly, the insurer might have the suitable to disclaim a declare. Driving with previous or worn-out tires, for instance, might improve your danger of accidents.”

However defective tires are only one maintenance-related downside that may result in an accident. Worn out brake pads may end up in brake failure. Low oil ranges may cause your automobile’s engine to overheat and probably shut down on the street. Damaged or malfunctioning headlights or flip indicators could make your automobile much less seen, rising the danger of collision with one other driver’s automobile. Previous wiper blades can lower your capability to see the street throughout a rainstorm.

“Insurance coverage corporations take automobile upkeep very significantly, and plenty of insurance policies embrace upkeep clauses that require you to maintain your automobile in secure working order,” mentioned Brad W. Huffman, lawyer and senior associate at Huffman & Huffman in Newport Information, Virginia.

“If an insurer can argue that neglect contributed to the accident, they could effectively deny your declare fully or scale back the quantity they’re keen to pay. From their perspective, the accident might have been prevented with correct maintenance.”

To maintain your automobile in tip-top form and keep away from an insurance coverage declare denial as a consequence of poor maintenance, Olson advised following these upkeep suggestions:

• Test tire strain commonly, rotate tires in accordance with producer suggestions, and exchange tires when their treads seem worn.
• Test and refill brake, energy steering, transmission, and windshield wiper fluids on a daily schedule. Exchange fluids at intervals advisable by your automobile’s producer.
• Change engine oil commonly.
• Continuously verify your brake lights, headlights, taillights, and switch indicators and exchange people who don’t operate correctly.
• Exchange worn wiper blades.
• Exchange your automobile’s battery when charging points come up.
• Exchange your automobile’s air filter commonly.
• Preserve a checkup schedule with an expert auto mechanic.

How the Insurance coverage Firm Is aware of What Form Your Automobile Was In Earlier than the Wreck

Insurance coverage corporations can use many assets to find out the situation of your automobile earlier than you filed a declare.

• Auto inspections: Some state insurance coverage legal guidelines and insurers require you to undergo a automobile pre-insurance inspection when buying a brand new coverage. Usually, the inspection will look at brakes, exhaust programs, headlights, suspension, and tires, amongst different automobile parts and components.
• Carfax experiences: These experiences can embrace your automobile’s mileage, harm historical past, and the situation of components reminiscent of tires and windshields.
• CLUE (Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange): Accessible by LexisNexis, CLUE experiences observe insurance coverage claims on private vehicles.
• Upkeep experiences: Auto service facilities sometimes generate situation experiences when servicing your automobile.
• Mechanical breakdown insurance coverage historical past: If you happen to carry non-obligatory mechanical breakdown insurance, your insurer might have entry to your car’s inspection and restore information.
• Pictures and movies: If you happen to’ve not too long ago purchased a used automobile or have posted images or movies of your experience on social media, an insurance coverage firm might have entry to the photographs.

“Police experiences will usually embrace notes on seen points like bald tires or damaged lights,” Huffman mentioned.

“Claims adjusters conduct thorough inspections of the automobile, and so they might verify service information or Carfax experiences to see if routine upkeep was uncared for. In some instances, images from the accident scene make it straightforward to identify issues like a blown tire or uneven tread, which may level to poor maintenance.”

The Backside Line

If you happen to personal a automobile, it’s your accountability to take care of it in roadworthy situation. Broken or worn-out tools, reminiscent of bald tires or defective brakes, can result in a visitors accident. If you happen to’re concerned in a crash, and the insurance coverage firm determines that negligent upkeep performed a job, it will possibly deny your insurance coverage declare. You may keep away from this expensive mistake by addressing your automobile’s upkeep wants as quickly as an issue arises and by documenting all upkeep work.