Dayton Defective Seatbelt Attorney
Seat belts reduce deaths in car crashes significantly, saving thousands of lives every year. However, if something is wrong with your seat belt, you run the risk of serious injury and death. If you are the victim of a defective seatbelt, contact a defective seatbelt lawyer in Dayton immediately. You may be able to claim compensation for your injuries through a product liability lawsuit.
Why Choose our Dayton Defective Seatbelt Attorneys?
- Our attorneys maintain an open line of communication with our clients, helping you stay informed and up to date about the facts of your case.
- Over our years of experience, our attorneys have obtained over $1 billion in compensation for our clients.
- We understand that you may be suffering from severe injuries due to your accident. Our attorneys will gladly make hospital visits and house calls when necessary.
The Dangers of Defective Seat Belts
Motor vehicle accidents are a leading cause of death among Americans. One of the best preventive measures to take in a car accident is to wear a seat belt. Seat belts save thousands of lives every year and without seat belts, car accidents would be even more devastating. Without a seat belt, drivers and passengers could fly through the windshield, eject themselves from the car, and injure themselves on other parts of the car.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention provides the following statistics about seat belt use and car accidents.
- Approximately 23,714 people died in motor vehicle crashes in the United States during 2016.
- Approximately 53% to 62% of the people who died in car crashes during 2016 were not wearing a seat belt when the crash occurred.
- Motor vehicle crashes are a leading cause of death for people aged 1 to 54 in the United States.
- Approximately 2.6 million people suffered injuries due to motor vehicle crashes in 2016 – without seat belts, the death rate would be much higher among these individuals.
Legal Options for Victims of Defective Seat Belts
If a defective seat belt led to worse injuries in your car accident, legal options are available. In the state of Ohio, you can claim compensation for injuries and damages sustained in car crashes due to a defective seatbelt through a product liability lawsuit. You can hold the manufacturer of the seat belt, the vendor of the seat belt, and/or the designer of the seat belt liable in your lawsuit. You must prove that the liable party acted negligently under one of these four basic theories of product liability.
- Defective Manufacturing: If the seat belt had a flaw in its manufacturing, such as not fitting into the buckle or made of a weak material, causing it to break, you can use this basis of liability. In your lawsuit, you would hold the manufacturer liable for your damages.
- Defective Design: The seat belt could contain a flawed design that affects more than just your specific product. For example, the seat belt tongue could be too big or small to fit the seat belt buckle. You would hold the designer of the product liable in this lawsuit, potentially with the manufacturer as well.
- Defective Warnings: This provision may not be as common in seat belt liability lawsuits, but you could hold a vendor or manufacturer liable for not putting adequate warnings on a seat belt. If a potential danger of using the seat belt exists, the manufacturer or vendor must warn consumers of it. If they do not, they could be liable for resulting injuries.
Contact Us Today – We Can Help
If you are the victim of a defective seatbelt, Elk & Elk can assist you with your product liability lawsuit. Contact Elk & Elk today to discuss your legal options with one of our Dayton defective seatbelt attorneys.