Each year, more and more consumers are attracted to sports utility vehicles (SUVs), which allow more room for family members as well as off-roading capabilities in some cases. However, with these bigger vehicles also comes a greater danger when they’re involved in an accident, for they are more likely to cause serious injuries. The car crashs at the Law Offices of Robert Dixon represent victims who have been hurt near Miami in SUV rollovers. Serving clients in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties, we are determined to help you seek proper compensation for injuries sustained in an accident.
Causes of SUV Rollovers
Since SUVs have a higher center of gravity than most other vehicles on the road, they are much more likely to roll over. In addition, a driver, whether experienced or not, who engages in certain actions may cause this type of accident. Situations that can result in SUV rollovers include:
Making a sharp turn or a quick change in direction;
Catching the edge or shoulder of the road, a pothole, or a railing; or
Excessive speeding leading to a crash into another vehicle or inanimate object.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, rollover crashes made up 35 percent of fatal passenger car accidents in 2010. Since an SUV may be loaded with many people or excessive cargo, the risk is especially high. The lack of rollover bars in many of these vehicles also adds to their propensity to flip during an accident. Other dangers associated with these types of crashes include ejection of passengers, fire, or a roof collapsing on occupants of the vehicle.
Hold a Negligent Driver Liable for Your Injuries
Often, it is an action by the driver that leads to an SUV rollover. If you were hurt in a crash, you can seek to hold the driver accountable by filing a personal injury lawsuit against him or her. These claims are generally based on the legal theory of negligence. To prevail, the injured person, or plaintiff, must show that the driver had a legal duty of care to act as a reasonable and prudent person would have behaved under similar circumstances, and that the driver’s actions breached that duty, causing the plaintiff’s injuries and resulting in damages.
All drivers in Florida owe a duty to others on the road, including passengers in their own cars, to act reasonably when operating their vehicles. If someone was distracted, intoxicated, or violating a traffic rule at the time of a rollover, this may constitute a breach. However, it still would be necessary to show that this careless conduct led directly to the injuries that the victim sustained and that they were a reasonably foreseeable result.
If more than one party is at fault for an accident, a victim can still recover damages. In Florida, a court awards compensation proportionate to each party’s degree of fault. Even if you were partly responsible for causing a rollover crash, you may still be able to receive a limited amount of reimbursement. Damages available to plaintiffs in a personal injury lawsuit may include past and future medical expenses, loss of income and earning capacity, and pain and suffering.
Because of the dangerous nature of SUV rollover accidents, a crash may result in a fatality. In such instances, family members may file a wrongful death claim to seek damages for a victim’s medical or burial expenses as well as loss of consortium.
