Mechanical Failures & Accidents: What To Know!
It’s no secret, and we all know it’s part of life – motor vehicle accidents happen. When you get your driver’s license, purchase or lease a car and set out on the open road, it’s a risk that sticks with you every time you get behind the wheel.
In the United States, there are roughly 6 million motor vehicle accidents each year, which equates to about 16,438 accidents per day.
One of the most unfortunate and upsetting types of motor vehicle accidents are those that take place due to mechanical failures.
When a car doesn’t operate as it was intended to, or as it was advertised to by the manufacturer and the dealer, and it leads to an accident, it makes the overall situation that much harder to come to terms with.
Thankfully, the manufacturers of those vehicles can be held accountable, and under the law, you or a loved one may seek compensation if an injury was caused due to automotive mechanical failure.
Every year there are 15,000 auto accidents in the U.S. caused by problems with the vehicles’ tires.
Three Types of Mechanical Failures
From when motor vehicles were first introduced until now, the safety standards and regulations associated with them have increased by such a large margin, but that doesn’t mean that mistakes don’t occur or that vehicles can pull off the assembly line with defects. Some of those can be incredibly minor, and may not cause anything severe to ever take place – however, there are those that aid in and mainly cause accidents to happen because they’re so catastrophic in nature.
Here are the three most common types of mechanical failures to look out for:
• Tire Failure:
Sadly, tire failure causes thousands upon thousands of motor vehicle accidents each year. There are many different reasons why a tire may rupture or detach from your vehicle – the most common of which are debris in the road, an immense amount of overuse, and the fact that it may have been over/underinflated.
It’s best to always take a second to check your tires before you leave your driveway, that way you can eliminate any issues.
• Brake Failure:
One of the absolute scariest things to realize while you’re operating a motor vehicle is that you cannot stop.
A failure with a vehicle’s brakes may take place if the anti-lock braking system malfunctions, which would subsequently cause the brake(s) to become immediately unresponsive. Sadly, defective brakes end up causing some of the most horrific and severe accidents.
• Defective Steering System:
The final mechanical failure to look out for is a defective steering column/system.
Obviously, a vehicle cannot operate if the driver cannot steer it. What most people fail to realize, is that while steering wheels can be of defect when they’re initially manufactured, often times the wheels of the vehicle will play a large part in a failure as many parts in the wheel of a car can become singularly inoperable and will cause steering failures all on their own.
Mechanical Failure Claims and Legal Theories
Looking at it with a broad lense, mechanical failures and the legal claims that follow can be placed into three buckets:
Defective Repair Claims: As any car owner knows, vehicles will always have to undergo routine repairs. Sadly, you may take your car to a repair shop and think that they’ll take good care of you, and take the necessary steps to ensure your safety – that’s not always the case. Many times these shops and their employees will take shortcuts to get their work done quicker. If you or a loved one is injured due to this, make it a point to reach out to an attorney to hold them accountable.
Defective Manufacturing Claims: Errors with vehicles can occur when they’re being assembled and manufactured, and these errors can lead to vehicle damage and motor vehicle accidents. Oftentimes, these errors occur due to issues unforeseen by the company who made the vehicle, or they can stem from the poor testing protocol on their end.
Defective Design Claims: Did you know that tens of thousands of vehicles are involved in accidents each year because of design flaws. It’s important to contact an attorney to help prove the manufacturer of the vehicle should’ve used a far safer design to help avoid accidents.
Our Experienced Motor Vehicle Accident Lawyers Take the Burden Off Your Shoulders!
An experienced car accident attorney recognizes that although an accident can occur within seconds, the serious injuries, pain, disability, and financial losses that result can last a lifetime. Every year, innocent victims are severely injured and sometimes killed in automobile accidents caused by negligent and reckless drivers.
Before you agree to a settlement with an insurance company, obtain knowledgeable legal advice from hard-fighting car accident lawyers at Marcari, Russotto, Spencer & Balaban. We understand how important it is to ensure that you are compensated for both today and tomorrow, and we are ready to stand up for your rights.
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