Personal Injuries

Automobile Design Defects

Motor vehicle accidents are generally caused by the negligence of one or more parties involved in an accident.  Some, however, are caused by automobile defects.  By employing proper safety designs, motor vehicle manufacturers can prevent many of the deaths and serious injuries that result from automobile accidents.  Under the law, manufacturers have a duty to protect occupants riding in their vehicles from foreseeable collisions - to make the vehicles “crashworthy.”

Crashworthiness is the ability of the vehicle to prevent occupant injuries in the event of an accident.  Crashworthiness deals primarily with the driver and passengers colliding against the interior of the vehicle.  Millions of defective vehicles remain on America’s roads, causing death and severe injuries in otherwise survivable accidents.

For many years the courts have allowed the consumers to sue carmakers when a design or manufacturing defect caused death or injury.  Car crashes are statistically inevitable.  However, car manufacturers have a duty to eliminate unreasonable risks of harm during the accidents.  An automobile’s safety depends on two things - an automobile’s crashworthiness, and accident avoidance features.  An example of accident avoidance features include antilock brakes, oversize tires, good handling features and features to minimize roll-over risks.  Crashworthiness features include features that minimize a second collision (injury within the vehicle), which include seatbelts or other features to prevent ejection from the vehicle or protection to reduce the risk of fire.  A lot of features have been available since the 1970s, yet many are still not in vehicles produced in the 1990s.

Davis & Feder P.A. handles cases involving design, manufacturing and warning defects involving Cars, Trucks, Sport Utility Vehicles, Motorcycles, Motorhomes and other vehicles including, but not limited to the following:

• Structural Crashworthiness
• Fuel System Fires
• Roof Crush
• Rollover
• Seat Collapse
• Stability Defects
• Air Bags and Occupant Restraint
• Door Latch
• System Failures
• Braking Systems
• Tire Defects
• Unintended Acceleration

If you or someone you know has sustained a serious injury related to a serious auto defect accident, and would like an experienced attorney to evaluate your claim, contact Davis & Feder P.A. at 1-866-857-8500.