Dallas Automobile Accident Attorney Serving Clients Nationwide
Although rollover crashes constitute only 3 percent of vehicle crashes, these crashes are responsible for one-third of all crash fatalities — 10,000 deaths annually. Sport utility vehicles (SUVs) account for a large majority these crashes.
Originally marketed for off road use, most SUVs have high suspensions and narrow wheelbases, which raise the car's center of gravity. This design works well for handling rough terrain.
Unfortunately, however, most SUVs today are used on highways, often traveling at high speeds. Because of their high centers of gravity, top heavy designs and narrow wheelbases, they are particularly susceptible to rollovers when a driver is forced to make an evasive maneuver at highway speed. Consider this:
- There were an estimated 8,000 fatal rollover accidents in 2009, in which about 2,300 were SUV rollovers.
- In the 10-year period during which Ford-Firestone tire-related rollovers caused some 300 deaths, more than 12,000 people — 40 times as many — died in SUV rollover crashes unrelated to tire failure.
- A Ford Explorer is 16 times as likely as the typical family car to kill occupants of another vehicle in a crash.
- 1 out of 4 new vehicles sold in the U.S. is an SUV, making it the most popular type of vehicle in America. The Ford Explorer is the most popular SUV in the world.
Despite the high likelihood of a rollover accident, many SUV manufacturers failed to design adequate safety measures into the vehicles and continue to do so.
If you were injured or a loved one died in a car, truck or SUV rollover or roof crush accident, contact Miller Weisbrod, LLP, for a free consultation with an experienced personal injury trial attorney. From our offices in Dallas, we serve clients nationwide.
What Causes a Rollover?
Compared to regular sedan passenger cars, SUVs (sport utility vehicles) are more likely to roll over during an accident because they are typically taller than regular passenger cars but do not have a much wider wheelbase. This gives SUVs a higher center of gravity. Thus, a sudden maneuver that would not result in a rollover for a standard vehicle can result in a fatal rollover accident for the sports utility vehicle. SUV manufacturers are aware of these design flaws, but choose not to correct them — choosing profits over safety. Unfortunately, many innocent victims have paid the price for this greed with serious injuries and their lives.
SUV Rollovers Can Have Catastrophic Results
Among other things, the lack of a roll bar in many models increases the likelihood of death or serious injury during a rollover accident. In many rollover accidents, passengers are thrown from the vehicle due to defective seatbelts or airbags and roofs cave in due to a lack of crashworthiness, further increasing the likelihood of catastrophic injury and death.
Another result of SUV rollover is roof crush. During a rollover accident, the absence of a strong roof or roll bar can cause intrusion of the occupant's survival space due to the collapse of the vehicle's roof. The end result is often serious head or neck injuries sustained by the vehicle's occupants.
Although many manufacturers acknowledge that rollovers do occur, few SUVs have been equipped with life-saving designs or construction to provide sufficient strength to prevent vehicle rollover and roof crush.
Because of the speed involved in the accidents, untested environments, such as uneven or slick surfaces and the actual design of the vehicles themselves, crash and rollover tests do not meet real world circumstances. The current standards are simply not enough to replicate what happens on the highways that we drive on.
Contact Miller Weisbrod
We know that the only way to force real change in auto industry safety standards and accountability is to hit negligent manufacturers hard and often. To learn more about your rights and legal options in seeking maximum financial recovery after a serious or fatal rollover and roof crush accident, please call our Dallas office at 214.987.0005 to speak with our experienced SUV rollover trial lawyers.
If you live elsewhere in Texas or in the country, please call us toll free at 888.987.0005 or contact us by e-mail to schedule an appointment. We represent clients nationwide.
