Roof Crush

Collapsing Roof In Rollover Accidents

Each year, thousands of Americans suffer catastrophic or fatal head and neck injuries as a result of weak vehicle roofs, roof headers and roof pillars that collapse during a rollover accident. When these supports fail and the roof crushes on a passenger's head, a bursting fracture to one of the vertebrae often results-which may leave the occupant with paraplegia or quadriplegia if they do indeed survive.

To the average person, roof pillars of most SUVs look sturdy enough to withstand a roof crush in a rollover accident. But take a closer look and you'll notice that the cross-section of the roof pillars are merely hollow sheet metal. If you then visualize a rollover accident, you can imagine this metal impounding on the occupant and causing severe injuries.

Statistics reveal that one out of every four people hurt in a rollover crash sustain injuries resulting from a roof crush. Recent studies show that if the inside of the hollow roof pillars are filled with even a dense foam material, the number of injuries and deaths from rollover accidents could be significantly reduced.

Also, in an effort to decrease the weight and cost of their vehicles, automotive manufacturers often trim pounds and inches from the roof and the vehicle's supporting structures. The government's roof crush standard, Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 216 (FMVSS 216) is so minimal that some argue it's hard to build a model that cannot pass it.

This standard states that the roof support or pillar on a passenger car must deform no more than five inches when it is subjected to a force of one-and-a-half times the vehicle's weight (or 5,000 pounds, whichever is less). Under the FMVSS 216, SUVs and light trucks are not even required to meet the minimal requirement-therefore the roof pillars of a 6,000 pound pickup truck or SUV would only need to about five-sixths of the vehicle's weight to pass the standard! Because of this, the roofs of many pickup trucks and SUVs crush under their own weight. Even more surprising is that this standard only applies to the front roof supports and pillars-not the center or rear ones.

In rollovers involving many SUVs, pickup trucks and large vans, the roof's strength is the difference between survival and serious injury or death. This is especially true in the larger SUVs such as the Chevrolet Suburban, Ford Explorer, GMC Yukon, Ford Excursion, Ford Expedition, Chevy Tahoe, Lincoln Navigator, Toyota Sequoia, Ford F150, F250, F350 trucks and most 15-passenger vans. The roof structure of these vehicles will often not withstand a rollover accident without substantial deformation and roof crush intrusion.

Many automotive engineers agree that an occupant's risk of injury is greatly reduced if you remain inside the vehicle during a rollover accident. In fact, statistics show that you have a five times greater chance of being killed or severely injured if you are thrown from a vehicle.

If you or someone you love has been involved in a roof-crush rollover accident, contact us today. Our experienced lawyers can answer questions and help you recover what you deserve.