SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. — A Seminole County woman blames a used tire for a catastrophic wreck along Interstate 4 that sent her SUV tumbling, killing her best friend and leaving her with severe injuries.
Marti Murphy told 9 Investigates an Altamonte Springs store sold her a 15-year-old tire that failed two weeks after her purchase, leading to the fatal crash.
But Channel 9's Vanessa Welch learned used tire dealers are not required to carry liability insurance and as a result, taxpayers will end up paying for her medical bills.
Murphy was driving home from New Smyrna Beach when she flipped her Ford Explorer along a Seminole County stretch of I-4 last year.
Her best friend, Angie, was killed in the accident. Murphy, herself, was pinned under the car and spent months in the hospital.
“Every time I see the car it makes me miss Angie,” Murphy told Welch.
Murphy said she bought a used tire from Altamonte New and Used Tires two weeks before the crash.
“I didn’t think they would put a tire on my car that wasn’t safe,” she said.
The tire was 15 years old. That’s twice the age recommended by safety experts.
Damage to the tire shows where it separated and came apart.
Welch, meanwhile, explained how investigators know Murphy’s tire was more than a decade old. Every tire is specially stamped with information detailing the year in which it was made. On Murphy’s tire, Welch spotted the number “348.” That number signified the tire was manufactured on the 34th week of the year 1998.
Today, Murphy struggles to use her left arm and has difficulty moving her fingers. She is suing for damages, but the tire dealer doesn’t have liability insurance.
“How can that be?” Welch asked Murphy’s attorney.
"There is no law in the state of Florida that requires a used-tire dealer to carry insurance," said attorney Frank Melton with the Newsome-Melton Law Firm. "We have been trying to pass legislation that would require this but it's defeated every time."
Welch and her cameraman went to the store where Murphy said she bought the tire. They noticed a large red sign warning that customers buy used tires “at your own risk.”
“Do you tell them the age of the tire when you put them on their car?” Welch asked one of the employees.
“I don’t understand English,” the employee responded, before referring her to the store manager.
“Are you selling tires that are 15 years old?” Welch asked that man.
“Stop. Let me call my lawyer,” he said.
“Do you tell your customers you don’t carry insurance?” Welch asked.
“Let me talk to my lawyer,” the manager responded.
Welch and her cameraman waited to talk to him about Murphy's lawsuit, but they were eventually asked to leave.
Melton specializes in helping families injured by defective tires. He said if you have to buy a used tire, make sure you ask the salesperson how old the tire is and if the shop’s management doesn’t know, walk out and go somewhere else.
Murphy regrets not asking more questions. She hopes other drivers will be more cautious.
“I don’t want anyone else to have to have the experience that I have had to go through,” she said.
There are no regulations on the sale of aged tires, but several big auto makers recommend drivers replace tires that are six years of age or older.
Cox Media Group
