Signs an Auto Defect Caused Your Injuries
When you’ve been involved in a motor vehicle accident, figuring out what caused your injuries is critical if you hope to recover compensation for your damages. One of the most common causes of car accident injuries is auto defects.
However, since vehicle malfunctions may not be as noticeable, recognizing the signs of an auto defect could help you when it is time to take legal action in your case. Here are some of the more common types of auto defects you should be aware of and the signs to look out for:
Common Auto Defects
Auto defects can take many forms. For your lawsuit to be successful, your attorney must show that the defendant’s actions directly or indirectly contributed to the injuries you sustained. With that in mind, some examples of common auto defects can include:
- Airbags that deploy with too much force
- Airbags that deploy too quickly
- Airbags that deploy when they should not deploy
- Airbags that failed to deploy properly
- Electrical system defects that caused vehicle fires
- Roof collapse during accidents such as rollover collisions
- Seat belts unlatching during a collision
- Loss of power steering
- Unintentional acceleration of the vehicle
- Tire defects
- Braking system failures
Generally, the types of auto defects that cause collisions can be separated into three categories. These include manufacturing defects, design defects, and failure to warn. Here’s more:
Manufacturing Defects
Manufacturing defects refer to an issue with how a specific product was made. Generally, this includes a single defect as opposed to an entire line of auto parts being defective.
Design Defects
Design defects mean there is an issue with the product’s inherent design. Its design likely fails to meet safety standards, and these defects typically affect an entire line of motor vehicle parts.
Failure to Warn
Motor vehicle parts need proper warning labels when they pose inherent threats to consumers when used as intended. If these motor vehicle parts did not have the necessary warnings, they could cause life-threatening and fatal injuries.
Finding the Cause of Your Injuries Is Crucial to Your Claim
Generally, defective auto parts can be blamed on virtually anyone involved in the distribution chain of these motor vehicle parts. This might include the actions of:
- Auto parts designers
- Auto parts manufacturers
- Auto parts distributors
- Auto parts retailers
- Motor vehicle mechanics
- Motor vehicle dealerships
- Other third parties
Your attorney will work diligently to build a compelling case against the liable party that demonstrates not only how the auto parts malfunctioned, thereby causing your injuries, but how the defendant’s negligence caused your damages.
Did a Defect Cause Your Car Accident Injuries?
Your car accident lawyer will closely evaluate the evidence in your case to determine whether an auto defect was responsible for causing your injuries. Generally, this becomes a key point of an investigation when a driver’s negligence was not the cause of the accident, nor were dangerous road conditions.
Evidence at the scene of the accident could indicate auto defects as well. For example, if law enforcement officials arrived at the scene of the collision and noted that the airbags did not deploy, this may be a sign that the airbags were defective. You can expect your attorney to conduct a thorough investigation into your motor vehicle accident to accurately determine how it occurred and who is to blame.
Evidence at the Accident Scene
A wide variety of evidence at the scene of a car accident may indicate the presence of an auto defect. Examples include:
- Airbags that deploy when the vehicle impacts at a low rate of speed
- Airbags that deploy when a vehicle is rear-ended
- Airbags that do not deploy despite a head-on collision
- Victims suffering debilitating injuries while wearing a seatbelt
- Victims being ejected from the vehicle despite wearing a seatbelt
- Separation of tire treads
- Tire blowouts
- Inward crushing roofs
- Roofs with open holes after an accident
- Rollover accidents without any other cause
- Fully extended seat belts
- Seat belts that have detached
- Side airbags that failed to deploy
Evidence from Your Injuries
Information can be obtained from your injuries, which may indicate that vehicle defects caused your accident. Examples of such evidence could include:
- Fractures to the lower body caused by your seatbelt
- Lack of vehicle compartment intrusion
- Facial injuries despite wearing a seatbelt
- Head injuries despite wearing a seatbelt
- Facial injuries despite no deployment of the airbag
- Head injuries despite no deployment of the airbag
- Fractures to the upper body with no vehicle compartment intrusion
These are only a few different types of evidence that could be gathered from the accident scene and your injuries. If you have additional evidence that could be used to prove auto defects contributed to your injuries, you can discuss them when you meet with your Pennsylvania car accident lawyer.
Get Help from a Car Accident Lawyer in PA For Help Today
When you need a Pennsylvania car accident lawyer to help you figure out which auto defects caused your injuries and how to make the liable party pay, do not hesitate to contact our team at Atlee Hall for a free consultation.
Schedule yours as soon as today when you fill out our online contact form or call us at 717-393-9596. If we take on your case, you can rely on our firm to gather the evidence needed to prove auto defects were the cause of your damages.