Rollovers: Roof Crush & Seat Belt Failure

Generally, in rollover litigation, plaintiffs seek to hold manufacturers liable on the basis of a design defect in the vehicle where they were injured. In the usual rollover case the claim is that the design defect caused the accident and/or enhanced the injuries suffered in the accident. Any claim related to enhanced injuries refers to a theory of recovery in which the manufacturer is held liable if the product enhances an injury beyond what the injuries would have been in a similar accident. It is called the crashworthiness doctrine. In essence, this means that even if it can not be proven that the manufacturer is responsible for causing the accident itself, it may be proven that the manufacturer may be liable for all or a portion of the person's injuries, or death because the design of the vehicle does not meet reasonable safety standards.

The statistics related to enhanced injuries in rollover accidents are astonishing. New fatality statistics show more than 10,694 people died in 2002 in rollovers. And sport utility vehicles, by far, had the highest rate, with 62 percent of all SUV deaths occurring in rollovers. That's nearly three times the rate for cars, which is 22 percent.

A great deal of rollover litigation focuses on Roof Crush and Seatbelt Failure

Roof Crush

Regardless of the mechanism for the SUV or other vehicle rollover, in some cases it may be shown that the vehicle's roof was not able to withstand the rollover accident. Roof crush cases generally involve neck or spine injuries that result from the occupant being crushed as the roof is compressed into the body of the vehicle. Defendants consistently argue that the injuries suffered in roof crush cases would have occurred regardless of the roof's strength. The typical argument is that the occupant suffered the head or neck injuries while being thrown into the roof prior to the roof being crushed. This is referred to as the occupant diving into the roof.

Thousands of Americans are killed and others suffered catastrophic injuries as a result of weak vehicle roofs that collapse during rollovers. In many of these roof crush/roof collapse cases, the roof supports known as the roof pillars, collapse allowing the roof to intrude into the occupant space.

To the untrained observer, roof pillars of most vehicles appear solid and sturdy, especially strong enough to withstand a roof crush in a rollover. But if you look at the cross-section of the pillars on a roof, you will see nothing more than hollow, corrugated sheet metal. During an impact, the metal folds over into the empty inner space, and may cause more crushing on the occupant. Studies show that if the inner part of the pillars are filled with high density foam or honey combed structure, then roof crush would be minimal and fewer deaths would occur due to a roof crush.

Seat Belt Failure

Defective seat belts, seat belt design failures & seat buckle defects increase chances of serious injuries & death during rollover accidents. In recent years, rollover litigation has revealed the following common types of seat belt defects or failures:

• Seat Belt Buckle Unlatching During Rollover or Collision
• Shoulder Belt Retractors that Skip or Fail to Hold Under Load
• Shoulder Belt That Allow Too Much Slack
• Automatic or Door Mounted Seatbelts that Kill and Maim
• Shoulder Only Belt Strangulations and Neck and Spinal Injuries
• Dangerous Lap Only Seat Belt Injuries and Deaths in Rear Seat and Center Seating Positions
• Chrysler Generation 3 / GEN 3 Seat belt Buckles Inadvertent or Unintentional Unlatching or Releasing During Crashes

Conclusion

Although roof crush and seat belt failure are frequent allegations in product liability claims against SUV manufacturers, there has also been a great deal of litigation related to other design defects, such as air bags and tires. Contact an attorney with experience in rollover litigation to evaluate if you have a valid claim against a manufacturer.

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