Yesterday when driving home from work, I was travelling along a road near a train station is metro SA and had to move closer to the centre of the road due to car parked along the side of the road. In doing so, I drove over a metal spike. I realised that there was something in my tyre, as it began to make a noise. When I got home (less than 500m from where I ran over the spike), I checked the tyre, and indeed found that this had punctured my tyre and gone through, which as soon as I removed it, the tyre went completely flat. Thankfully the spare is in working order, but long term, I will need to repair or replace the tyre that was damaged. I don't believe that I was at fault and would like to know if anyone has challenged either their council or road transport divisions for compensation and been successful.
Damage to Tyre from Metal Spike on Road
Last edited 03/11/2016 - 16:38
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They would need to prove negligence on the council/road dept.
As k-rokfm says, if it's something that's just fallen off the back of a private vehicle, very slim chance. Only way would be if it fell down a week ago, unsafe for the public to move and the council/road dept have been notified and given a chance to rectify.
That's what I thought….thanks for the reply :)
You, the operator of a moving vehicle drove onto a metal object causing damage. Why do you think you are not at fault?
I once drove over a reflective road marker that punctured my tire, So annoying!
what kind of metal spike? this will depend on whether you would be able to look at claiming it from council. eg. could it have just fallen off the back of a ute or was it caused from lack of maintenance from the road?
I'm interested to know what kind of tyre you have that actually has a tube!!!!
car tyres can have tubes (not typical, and not best practise).
I have a bead breaker and tyre levers which enables me to fix punctures. I typically only repair trailer tyres because I'm not concerned about nicks/scratches on the rims. tubes/patches = cheap fixes
Sure, but its very much the exception rather than the rule - I am interested to know what car/tyre set up the OP has!
I have since edited the post to reflect the rushed post I made (and how unfamiliar with car tyres I am).
Surely if anyone is at fault (other than your good, sensible, reasonable self, of course), it's the thoughtless driver that parked on the side of the road, forcing you to drive into a possibly dangerous situation… I'd be going not only for property damages, but also for compensation for suffering caused.
You're actually kidding, right?
Seriously? Absolutely no one who gets a punctured tyre is at fault - it is always someone/something else. I have had a few punctures whilst driving (as everyone has surely?) caused by a careless nail on the road, or some screw which might've fallen off the back of a tradies ute.
Not my fault, but that's driving life.
Move on.Your first time..you have had a good run. I get one every couple of years. There is another post on here if you do a search. In summary, I would be surprised if you have a tube. Simply counter sink the puncture slightly, screw in a short, but fatter than the whole flat head counter sink screw below the tread line. Can smear silicone under/ over screw. Drive on. In general I would move the tyre to the rear for safety, but i'm 5/5 none have come out and lasted the life of the tyre.
I have had one other instance where I got a flat tyre due to a screw going in the tyre, but that was a number of years ago.
Good luck trying to sue the council for the metal spike.
You should also add "excessive tyre wear" to your list of items to claim because they made the road too coarse.
A lot of repair places will repair your tyre for under $30, as long as it hasn't punctured the sidewall. Although if it has an inner tube then I'm not sure what that will cost, but it surely can't be that much.
Nothing wrong with being generous to your fellow ratepayers and not trying to make them pay.
Thought you aren't supposed to remove foreign objects for safety reasons + the wheel can be easily repaired if it isn't flat.
I can save you the effort. I cracked a link pin from hitting a crater at 80kph. Took the car in for repair (I bottomed out and thought it wise to check the subframe and the rest of the suspension). After chatting to the local mechanic, at that point he was doing a roaring trade and had seen 5 people already over the course of a week about this pothole.. Most people had bent or cracked rims, but one SUV had cracked his lower control arm in half.
Council denied responsibility. But a week later, they had filled it in.
It's councils' responsibility to maintain roads and fill potholes but the legislation/common law dictates they are they are not liable to pay for people who hit the potholes and suffer damage, unless someone had already reported the pothole and they failed to act.
That is not correct. The council paid for my tyre when it was burst going down a pothole.
It is correct. I think you just got lucky, or perhaps the pothole you hit was actually reported to them. Have a look at the Civil Liability Act. And here is a good council guideline which confirms that claims are seldom successful.
http://www.mackay.qld.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0019/191…
Bottom line is that council does not control your vehicle. The driver does. Driver is hence responsible.
Per the civil liability act, this is not correct. The road authority is liable for damage where they have known about it in advance.
However the onus of proof is always on the claimant.. Which is why it's rare for a claim to be successful.
exactly and they can claim time to fix and also that YOU control your vehicle!
@Amayzingone: control of the vehicle isn't mentioned in the act. Actually I'm curious as to why you even mention it… We're not talking about doing circle work and hitting a power pole side on. The average punter isn't going to see a nail on the road, let alone swerve around it.
@airzone: This is valid argument in a court of law my friend. No different to hitting a pedestrian which you didn't see. Its not an argument sorry.
Once had a 3.5mm headphone jack sticking out of my tyre. 20$ to fix.. Cash job at a tyre store. Next time I'm buying iPhone tyres.
Don't make that mistake, regular tyre repairs don't fit the iPhone plug :D
Go for the iPhone 7 tyres. They don't have a headphone plug.
I went down a pothole left after a flood and it burst my tyre immediately.
I rang the council because it was deep and dangerous.
They came out and fixed the pothole the same day and paid for a new tyre.
I also received a letter of apology.
I appreciate that this case is different, but it shows that you can get redress in clear-cut circumstances.Here we go again. Another IDIOT trying to blame someone else for thier own bad judgement and resulting misfortune. As others have said, take responsibility YOURSELF and stop wasting our time.
I find that sort of ignorant response unnecessary. Was I driving along a road minding my own business? Yes. Did I ask to drive over a piece of metal that pierced my tyre causing it to go flat? No. Did I actually say that I was going to sue the council? No. Would I? No. I simply asked the question whether or not anybody had had any prior contact with Councils to see if they had any form of compensation.
Am I wasting your time by responding to your TROLL response. Yes, and I'm glad I did, because it seems like you have enough time to TROLL through this post and provide an unintelligent response such as the one that you did.Amayingone didn't say you were going to sue anyone, but the "…has anyone challenged either their counsil or road transport divisions for compensation and been successful…" bit reaks of trying to pass the blame (or the "buck", ba-doom-tish).
For that matter the, "… I don't believe that I was at fault…" also carries a whole lot of blame shifting, you chose to drive on the roads provided, you've got to be prepared for the fact that there's going to be a risk involved with using them.
Yeah running over a nail is standard wear and tear.. Like having a stone kick up and chip your windscreen. Given the repair costs are only $20 - 30, then it's really not worth the time perusing.
I don't agree with Amayzingone's opinion though. It's not bad judgement that causes you to run over a nail.. It's bad luck.
@airzone: Savemore is trying to blame council for his misfortune. Who is he gonna blame when he runs over a pedestrian which he didnt see?
Thats my point. The guy will not take any responsibility. Wants everyone else to pay for his mistakes.
Just wait when he does exactly that. He will post here blaming the pedestrian and seeking our sympathy. Guaranteed.
Sorry but savemore is just another JERK!
Good Amazingzone! Use your aggressive feelings, boy. Let the hate flow through you!
The keyboard warrior is strong within this one.
Love ya!
I got a puncture the other day, driving over a nail or something that made it go flat almost instantly. It did not even occur to me to find out who is at fault. It's just one of those things that happen.
Yep. Im with you. Just wait till you drive past a building site. Nails and screws everywhere.
Can you tell me why you think the council or road transport is responsible? (<- This is not sarcasm, I'm actually interested in your reasons)