A number of people have been calling for the wear & tear elements to be enabled in Free Flight, not just Career, for this very reason. And some developers include failures, which turn the walkaround in a very meaningful exercise indeed.
I understand that the walkaround isn’t for everyone (and should be optional). At the moment it’s a pointless affair. But by the same token, making realistic flights in a simulator where the aircraft is 100% reliable and no surprises could ever occur (except perhaps a CTD 
) is taking away from teaching capabilities of the simulation.
Having consequences for mistakes, for me, is a huge part of the value of the simulation. It’s a way to improve my skills. The walkaround can contribute to that - provided it’s not abstracted to simple green ticks and actually requires some effort on the player to check and make an actual judgement. Primarily talking GA here, just for reference.