What is Reasonable to Expect From Your Car?

If you are like most people, you expect that all of the safety features that the car dealer raved about when selling you your vehicle will actually work when it is time to protect you and your loved ones during a car accident. However, many times that is not the case. Not only are there many instances where these safety devices do not work, there are many times that the actual safety device creates more harm to the occupants of the vehicle.

Crash worthiness generally can be described as looking at the technical and economic feasibility of avoiding foreseeable harm to occupants in motor vehicle collisions. 

More specifically, there are certain things that should not happen if your vehicle is involved in a motor vehicle accident. The first thing that I see most often is that a car should not blow up and burn as a result of a car crash. I know this happens in the movies frequently, but if you see that happen to a car in real life, most likely there is some kind of defect in the design or construction of the vehicle that caused it.

It is widely accepted that a person should not burn alive in an otherwise survivable crash. Accordingly, motor vehicles are supposed to be designed and built to prevent fires after a crash. Unfortunately, some cars, trucks, and SUVs have defects in their design or manufacturing that can result in electrical and fuel-fed fires. In fact, according to the US Fire Administration, post-collision fires are the leading cause of vehicle-related deaths.

If you are involved in a car accident, your car must effectively keep the occupant inside the vehicle, in a space sufficient to survive while being protected from harmful contact with the vehicle's interior. In other words, if you are using your seat belt along with air bags and other safety equipment, you should not be thrown about the car during an accident thus causing further injury or death.

If you are in car accident and your doors open during the crash, most likely there is a defect. Minimum design requirements say that doors must not open in a reasonably foreseeable collision due to linkage activation, inertial opening, or other failure mechanisms.

These are just a few examples of possible defects in your car should they occur as a result of a car accident. There are many more times that you or a loved one could be injured or killed by a defective automobile. 

If you have suffered injuries from what you think may have been a defect in your car, contact us at Linton & Associates . We are personal injury attorneys that handle cases in all 67 counties in the State of Alabama. We are equipped to effectively help you with any products liability claim you may have. Contact us today for a free evaluation.

My name is Christopher S. Linton, Attorney at Linton and Associates Law Firm in Birmingham, Alabama. We specialize in Personal Injury, Wrongful Death, Premises and Product Liability, Auto Accidents and Infant Injury and Death.

Keywords:  Vehicle Safety, Alabama Motor Safety, After Collision Fire, Auto Defects Causing Injury or Death