Glad to hear you're okay. My household also learned the hard way not to skimp on car upkeep...DH blew a shock (that he had known was due for replacement) and drove his car into a ditch, while carrying a lot of expensive equipment in the hatch.
it's not fun crashin, about 4 year's ago i wreak my explorer in a head on with a toyota sienna van and the guy was drunk i was coming back home from my g/f house at around 230 am and i thought it was some stupid kid playing chicken but then i flash my light's and saw that he was slumped over and when i tryed to turn out of the way i was to late. i was not wearing my seatbelt but thank god im a big dude other wise i would of went out the front window. i tryed to check on the guy but he was trying to leave the scene but his car was hook in mine and when he reached into his pocket's for some thing i feared my live and beat the crap outta him i know im bad but i love that truck and he got what he deserve's......
It's always better (and WAY cheaper) to do preventative maintenance than wait until the last minute and pay the (expensive!) price! Proper tire inflation is important too, not only for long tire life, but for maximum fuel economy.