Crashworthiness

In any major San Antonio accident or collision, the occupants of a vehicle are almost always subject to a number of extreme forces that can result in serious personal injury or death. These forces include rapid deceleration and rapid acceleration, depending on the direction of impact at the initial point of collision. Our attorneys have studied these forces and their connection to various areas of the law extensively, particularly under the concept of crashworthiness.

The concept of crashworthiness deals primarily with the second collision that results from these extreme forces, during which the driver and passengers collide against the interior of the vehicle. If the vehicle involved in the San Antonio accident was properly designed, the vehicle distributes these forces over the longest period of time and distance possible. Fortunately, our lawyers are experts at identifying these design features and assessing their roadworthiness. Crashworthiness features are designed to minimize occupant injuries, prevent ejection from the vehicle, and reduce the risk of fire.

In other words, the concept of crashworthiness is concerned with whether the manufacturer designed the vehicle and its component parts so that it is safe for any and all foreseeable use and will properly protect the occupants of the vehicle during a collision. It is foreseeable that the vehicle may be involved in a collision; therefore, a manufacturer has a duty to the design the vehicle so that it is reasonably safe should a high or low impact collision occur.

If the injuries sustained during a collision are more severe than they had to be due to improper design or manufacturing leading to tire defects, crashworthiness, SUV rollovers, fuel fires, or other issues, the vehicle manufacturer can be held liable for those excessive amounts of damage.

It is important to remember that the cause of the accident is usually considered irrelevant in San Antonio vehicle crashworthiness cases. Even if the design or manufacturing flaw did not directly cause the accident itself, a crashworthiness case is concerned with how that flaw contributed to the injuries suffered during the accident. Part of a Carabin Shaw lawyer’s basic strategy is to turn those extra medical services and recovery time into a better settlement or award amount for you and your family.

In order for you and your family to recover monetary damages from the manufacturer in a San Antonio claim based on a motor vehicle's crashworthiness, you will need to prove that the faulty design feature caused additional injuries during the collision impact. One of the most effective ways to establish this is to show that a safety device or a safe alternative was available on the market, but unavailable to the occupants of the injured vehicle. Our San Antonio SUV rollover attorneys can help you do just that.

However, these types of additional injuries can be difficult to identify. If you have ever been in an auto accident, you know that during impact, your first and main concern is your safety, followed closely by the safety of those around you. It is unreasonable to expect you would be able to identify what caused your injuries, much less a specific design flaw that made those injuries worse.

This is precisely why our lawyers specialize in identifying those causes after the fact. We offer free consultations to everyone who calls, so we can hear about the accident from your perspective, begin identifying possible primary and secondary causes for your injuries, and hire investigators and transportation experts as necessary.

If you or a family member have been injured or wrongfully killed and suspect the crashworthiness of your vehicle to be at fault, call our San Antonio office day or night at 210-222-2288, or toll free at 800-862-1260.