Traffic is distressful enough without having to worry about the car that you are driving. When claims for auto accidents meet claims of product Defects, the results are usually mass actions, product recalls and hundreds of millions of dollars in product liability claims.

Automobile product liability claims come in all shapes and sizes. There are defective manufacturing claims, defective design claims and failure to warn claims. These are claims that the manufacturer or retailer will have to pay for. Here are a few types of defects:

• Tire Defects

Defects in the tires often cause tire tread separation or tire blowouts. When this occurs, the person driving loses control of the vehicle and suffers a collision or a rollover accident. A notable example of tire defects is that of Firestone’s tires in Ford vehicles, notably the Ford Explorer. Because of the unusually high number of tread separations which led to rollover accidents and hundreds of deaths, Firestone issued a massive tire recall and ended a century-long relationship with Ford Motor Company.

• Rollovers

Rollovers arise out of a poorly placed center of gravity in the vehicle, making it vulnerable to rollovers at the slightest nudge. These are more prominent in SUVs, trucks and vans. In the Firestone-Ford case mentioned previously, Ford was also blamed for making the Explorer too prone to rollover wrecks in the event of a tire blowout. Rollover accidents are the deadliest type of auto wrecks even though they occur less often than other kinds of crashes.

• Roof Crush

Any crashworthy car must have roofs that remain secure in the event of a rollover. However, when there are defects in the design or manufacturing of the roof, a roof crush injury could occur when a part of the roof displaces into the passenger’s compartment. The collapse of a vehicle’s roof often leads to traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries or death.

• Seat Belt Failure

A defective seat belt is one that unlatches or breaks in the event of an accident. When the release mechanism engages at the slightest force, or when the seat belt breaks, the occupant becomes free to tumble around in the vehicle or get thrown out through a door, window or windshield, causing catastrophic injuries or death. When manufacturers are negligent, legal action is the best recourse.

• Door Latch Failure

When people lean against the doors in a car vehicle, one of their worst nightmares would involve the door unexpectedly falling open, and the occupant tumbling out onto the road. When the door latch has been manufactured negligently, this happens. Further, a door lock is expected to hold even in the event of a crash. So when the door opens in the case of an accident causing the traveler to fall out, the manufacturer must take responsibility.

• Defective Airbags

Airbags are meant to pop out and prevent you from flying out the car or move around too much in the event or a wreck. However, when made poorly, injuries occur. For example, a defective airbag could deploy too slowly, or too forcefully. The airbag could also send shrapnel and debris particles into the occupant with the same force as gun shots do. A notable example is that of Takata airbags. In this case, what could have been just minor accidents turned fatal for many drivers due to being shot with metallic particles from exploding airbags. They often hit the traveler’s face causing blindness, traumatic brain injury or death.

• Fires

Fires are often caused due to a defect in the gas tank. Gas tank defects lead to fuel leaks which quickly get ignited by a spark caused by friction between metallic parts while the car moves on the road. When this occurs, there is a high possibility of an explosion that can injure or kill not just the passengers in the car, but other people near it.

• Faulty Ignition Switch

Notably, in the case of General Motors, a defective ignition switch can turn off the engine while the car is still moving, leading to a loss of control over steering and braking, and consequently, an accident. By shutting off the engine, defective ignition switches also prevented airbags from deploying and protecting occupants from injury or death.

These motor defects are only a part of an extensive list of manufacturing errors in automobiles. The presence of even one of these defects can significantly bring down the crashworthiness of the vehicle, opening the door to thousands of product liability actions.

If you believe your accident was caused by a defect, our car accident attorneys are accepting product liability claims and mass tort actions. Book a consultation with award-winning attorneys before the deadline to do so expires.

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