There are a number of factors that can play into causing the demise of your windshield wipers and let you know that you may have a dangerous problem. Aging. Windshield wipers are really only designed to last 6-12 months but most of us only replace them when we take a car in for servicing and the service tech mentions it. Even then, many of us are likely guilty of saying we’ll just do it next time. Next time can turn into years for some people who don’t drive that often. After too long, the rubber becomes cracked or hard preventing them from sealing against the glass to smoothly clean it. Wear and tear. Dirt, dust, ice, pebbles, and debris flying up from the roadway or being washed over your car when it rains can all become stuck to your windshield or trapped under the wiper blades. When you use your windshield wipers, all of this grime becomes lodged between the glass and rubber and can damage the blades. Defective blades. If wiper blades aren’t formed properly when being made, it can cause them to be ineffective at their job. When something goes wrong in the production process, such as using bad rubber or blade arms not contouring properly to the blade, it can end in your wiper blades putting you at risk. If this causes you to have an accident where you or someone else is injured, you could have a product liability claim.