G.R. No. 113003 - Yobido vs. Court of Appeals

On April 26, 1988, spouses Tito and Leny Tumboy and their minor children Ardee and Jasmin boarded a Yobido Liner bus in Mangagoy, Surigao del Sur, bound for Davao City. At Km. 17, Sta. Maria, Agusan del Sur, the left front tire exploded. The bus fell about three feet into a ravine, struck a tree, resulting in the death of Tito Tumboy and injuries to other passengers.
The exploded tire was a new Goodyear inner tube tire purchased on April 20, 1988, and mounted on April 21 by the bus conductor, Abundio Salce.

On November 21, 1988, Leny Tumboy and her children filed a complaint for breach of contract of carriage, damages, and attorney’s fees against Alberta Yobido (owner) and Cresencio Yobido (driver), who pleaded caso fortuito and impleaded Philippine Phoenix Surety and Insurance, Inc.; the RTC dismissed the third-party complaint and, after trial, on August 29, 1991, dismissed plaintiffs’ action for lack of merit, finding the tire blowout a fortuitous event.
The plaintiffs appealed. On August 23, 1993, the Court of Appeals reversed, ruling the explosion was not fortuitous, invoking the presumption of negligence, and awarded ₱50,000 for death, ₱30,000 moral damages, and ₱7,000 funeral expenses. A motion for reconsideration was denied on November 4, 1993. Petitioners then brought the case to the Supreme Court via certiorari.

Whether the explosion of a newly installed tire is a fortuitous event that exempts the carrier from liability for a passenger’s death.
Whether the carriers exercised the “extraordinary diligence” required under Articles 1755 and 1756 of the Civil Code to overcome the statutory presumption of negligence.