While most car accidents are caused by negligent drivers, not all of them are. Each year, there are countless automobile recalls due to safety issues with vehicles. But not all recalls are successful at preventing accidents. If an auto defect was responsible for your accident, you have the right to take legal action.
Proving that an automobile defect was to blame is no simple task and will require the input of skilled legal counsel. You can trust the Hollywood, Florida car accident attorneys of Klotzman Property Damage Law to put your best interests first.
If you would like know more information about what to do after a rear-end car accident, view this page
What Victims Need to Know About Auto Defects
Each year, there are countless automobile recalls due to safety issues with vehicles. If an auto defect caused your accident, you have the right to take legal action. But demonstrating that a car wreck was the result of some problem with the vehicle is challenging.
The accident victim first has to prove there was a defect that caused the crash. In other words, even if something was wrong with the automobile, that alone doesn’t prove it led to the accident. The vehicle’s manufacturer or some other liable party could still try to blame a driver (including the victim) for the wreck.
Your Hollywood, Florida automobile accident attorney will first have to figure out the nature of the defect. Most defects are either design flaws or manufacturing flaws.
A design flaw is something that makes the automobile inherently dangerous. Regardless of how a car or its components are assembled, for instance, a design flaw renders it unsafe. Conversely, a well-designed vehicle (or component of one) could be assembled incorrectly. This is a manufacturing flaw.
These are just some examples of ways that auto defects can cause accidents:
- High centers of gravity in SUVs can lead to rollovers.
- Gas tanks explode or catch fire during an accident.
- Brakes lock or otherwise fail.
- Airbags fail to deploy, deploy too forcefully, or deploy when they shouldn’t.
- Sticking accelerators can cause a vehicle to speed uncontrollably.
- Electrical problems may cause loss of power or lighting.
- Tires shred, blow out, or otherwise fail.
- Defective steering wheel parts cause loss of vehicle control.
Automobile Defects Can Cause Significant Injuries
A vehicle defect may act as the primary or secondary cause of an accident victim’s injuries. A primary cause means the defect directly led to an accident. Without the defect, in other words, the crash would not have happened. An example is brake failure which causes a wreck.
When a defect is a secondary cause, it aggravates a victim’s injuries. A faulty gas tank is a good example of this. Perhaps a driver’s negligence caused the accident itself. But then the gas tank catches fire or explodes, causing additional injuries. This situation points to the defect being a secondary cause.
Hollywood, Florida auto accident lawyers need to know whether a cause is primary or secondary. It can affect how many potentially liable parties there are and their respective degrees of responsibility.
How Your Accident Lawyer Will Help Your Auto Defect Case
Due to the above matters, your Hollywood, Florida car crash attorney will conduct an investigation of the accident. Expert witness testimony may prove invaluable in this effort.
An expert witness is someone with technical or specialized knowledge who can explain complex subject matters to jurors. For example, an accident reconstructionist can sort through the evidence and explain how and why the crash occurred. This will help identify the responsible parties and how liable each one was for your injuries.
If a vehicle defect caused your injuries, several parties could be held liable. Among them are:
- The automobile manufacturer
- The factory that assembled the automobile
- An automobile parts supplier
- The dealership that sold or leased the automobile
- A repair shop that did poor work on the automobile
Injured in a Car Accident? Klotzman Property Damage Law Can Help
Were you hurt in an automobile accident that wasn’t your fault? Our Hollywood, Florida car collision lawyers will take a look at how and why you were injured. Then, we will get to work holding the at-fault party or parties accountable.
Give our Hollywood personal injury lawyers at Klotzman Property Damage Law a call today to get started.
