Injury & Malpractice Attorney Serving Clients Near Dallas, Ft. Worth, Plano, Arlington, Irving, North Texas & Arkansas
You may be an excellent driver and may never have been involved in an auto accident. But if your vehicle is defective and you are unaware of that fact, a car accident is more likely to happen.
Vehicle defects can turn an otherwise survivable accident into a fatal accident. Defects can be in the design of your vehicle or in its manufacture and some examples are:
- Defective steering systems
- Faulty brake systems
- Defective fuel systems
- Insecure door latches
- Inadequate roof crush resistance
Vehicle defects can also be in any separate vehicle components and some common examples are:
- Faulty tires
- Inoperative airbags
- Defective car seats
- Defective seat belts
- Inadequate headrests
- Defective engine lights or external lights
Somebody's Negligence
A hidden defect in your vehicle has a surprise element - it is not something you would have thought of fixing. It suddenly makes itself known while you are driving and the potential car accident is therefore not a matter of negligence on your part. Rather, it may be negligence on the part of the car designer or manufacturer and you may have legal recourse to obtain compensation for injuries and property damage.
How Vehicle Defects Can Worsen an Auto Accident
Depending on which part of your vehicle is defective, any car accident can be made more dangerous in a variety of ways.
Fuel system defects can cause a fire or explosion. The system itself may be intact, but may have been poorly designed or wrongly installed. Severe burn injuries can cause permanent disability and disfigurement.
Faulty tires and a design flaw that puts the vehicle's center of gravity too high can cause a rollover.
Lack of roof crush resistance can bring the roof down on the vehicle's occupants in a rollover, causing more severe injuries, especially brain injury and spinal cord injury.
Defective seat belts, airbags, and car seats can allow a vehicle occupant to be ejected onto the road, which places them in further danger from oncoming traffic. The impact of that ejection can also cause more severe injury than would have otherwise been suffered.
When a minor car accident is turned into a major one by a defective vehicle, you may want to consult a car accident attorney such as John Polewski to learn more about your legal options. If you are in the Dallas, Texas area, please contact our car accident lawyers today to schedule a free case evaluation. We have three Dallas area office locations for your convenience.
If you or a loved one have been seriously injured in a car accident because of a defective vehicle, contact Polewski & Associates today at 972.230.6200.
