California Rollover Attorney

Products Liability: Determining Fault for Injuries Caused by Defective Products in Rollover Accidents

Manufacturers of vehicles and their parts as well as others in the distribution chain, including wholesalers and dealers, are responsible for ensuring that passenger cars, pick-ups, vans and SUVs and their component parts are safe and do not pose an unreasonable risk of harm to the public. Injuries in a rollover accident that result from the defective manufacture of a car or SUV, or their parts, can subject the manufacturer to damages under the area of law known as products liability.  A court might find a defendant in a rollover accident liable under any of three product liability theories: negligence, breach of warranty or strict liability.

• Negligence in Rollover Accidents

Auto and parts makers are in the best position to know and foresee the potentially harmful effects of the products they manufacture and distribute. Therefore, they owe a duty of care to consumers to act in a reasonably prudent manner when designing, engineering, manufacturing, testing and inspecting an automobile or SUV so as to avoid or minimize the chances of a rollover accident. Manufacturers must also warn of potential risks of accidental rollover and other dangers in a manner that is understandable to the average consumer.

When it is proven that a manufacturer in a rollover accident has failed to exercise reasonable care, or to provide adequate warnings, that manufacturer can be held liable for its negligence, if that negligence was a cause of injury. The issue at trial is often whether the car, SUV or the suspected parts, performed as an ordinary consumer would expect. Ordinary consumers have a reasonable expectation that their vehicles will not be prone to rollovers. They also have a reasonable expectation that in the event of a rollover accident the vehicle will be sufficiently well designed and manufactured, or "crashworthy," to keep their occupants reasonably safe.

• Application of Breach of Warranty in Rollover Accidents

Manufacturers and distributors of cars and SUV's, and their parts, may also be held liable for a breach of warranty.  A warranty is a promise that is either express or implied. An express warranty is a promise that is set forth in written or spoken words. It might be contained in the sales brochure for an SUV, in labeling on a car, or in spoken representations made by a salesperson. If a representation is made that a car or SUV will be safe from rollover accidents at certain speeds, this assertion may create an express warranty. An individual who sustains injuries in a rollover accident due to the failure of the vehicle to perform as promised could sue for breach of the express warranty. An implied warranty, on the other hand, is created by operation of the law and exists merely because a product is sold. There is an implied warranty that products, including cars and SUVs, are safe when used for their intended purpose.

• Strict Liability as a Theory in Rollover Accidents

The distribution of a vehicle may also trigger what is called strict liability if the car or SUV is defective in a way that makes it unsafe for its ordinary use. The scrutiny in a strict liability lawsuit is on the product itself and not the care taken by the manufacturer or any other party in the chain of distribution. It does not matter that a retailer or wholesaler was not negligent or careless about the defective manufacture of a vehicle prone to rollover accidents. All that matters is that the defendant sold a product that poses a high risk of rolling over and causing injury. Therefore, under strict liability, placing such a car or SUV into the marketplace with defects which cause a rollover accident can make each member of the distribution chain, including the manufacturer, distributor and dealer, potentially liable for any resulting injuries.