Car Seat Back Collapse in Personal Injury Lawsuits
Faulty seat backs can result in serious vehicle accident injuries.
Especially vulnerable to rear-end collisions, front seat backs can collapse, causing injury to both front and back seat passengers.
When seats fall backward, leaving passengers prone, the passengers can slide out from under the safety belt toward the back of the vehicle or be ejected entirely from the car.
Of course, if a driver is thrown into a prone position, it makes it nearly impossible for that driver to regain control of the car and prevent it from moving into ongoing traffic or toward a cliff, tree, or other hazard.
Why do seats fail? Seat back malfunction can be the result of improper design, manufacturing mistakes, or installation mistakes.
Often, the fault is weak materials.
Bolts and other hardware can break, or the frames of the seats can buckle.
The impact can rip them from the floor of the vehicle.
In one case that especially got the attention of auto manufacturers and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a woman burned to death when she was trapped in the back seat under the collapsed front seat, and the car caught on fire.
Children and Front Seat Back Failures Children in the back seat are especially vulnerable to injury if the front seat fall on top of them.
These seat failures have been of great concern to parents who have been told to avoid allowing children to ride in the front seat because of the danger of air bags.
A paper published by the NHTSA in 1997 addressed this issue, stating, "It may be important to assess the injuries caused by the interaction of rear and front seat occupants due to the front seat collapse.
This is especially true with the increased emphasis of placing children in the rear seats.
" Some experts say that the risk to children can be decreased by placing their car seats behind the front passenger's seat and driving without anyone in that front seat.
The seat is not as likely to fall backwards if the weight of a passenger is not putting pressure on it.
Obviously, this is inconvenient for families traveling together.
If there is a rear middle seat, that can also be safer than riding behind a backseat, especially if the rear middle seat includes a shoulder strap safety belt.
The Dispute About Seat Back Safety Regulations Some attorneys and consumer organizations have claimed that manufacturers have settled seat back-related product liability lawsuits discreetly in order to keep defective seat back issues from becoming well-known.
In the opinion of some, the safety requirements as to the strength of seat backs are still not stringent enough.
One argument made by auto manufacturers is that seats that are too rigid can contribute to whiplash.
Nevertheless, research seems to show that the risk of whiplash is not as great as catastrophic injury or death to both front and back seat passengers when a seat back collapses.
Furthermore, a study in Sweden in the 1990's showed that stronger seats could still prevent whiplash as long as the seat padding and head rests were sufficient and properly made.
Even if it collapses, it can be difficult to prove that the injuries were caused by that collapse.
Car manufacturers almost always argue that the collision itself was solely to blame.
Certain law firms specialize in these types of automotive product liability cases and have particular expertise in prosecuting them.
They also are aware of experts in the field who can assess whether or not a seat back collapse contributed to or caused the injuries or deaths involved.
Especially vulnerable to rear-end collisions, front seat backs can collapse, causing injury to both front and back seat passengers.
When seats fall backward, leaving passengers prone, the passengers can slide out from under the safety belt toward the back of the vehicle or be ejected entirely from the car.
Of course, if a driver is thrown into a prone position, it makes it nearly impossible for that driver to regain control of the car and prevent it from moving into ongoing traffic or toward a cliff, tree, or other hazard.
Why do seats fail? Seat back malfunction can be the result of improper design, manufacturing mistakes, or installation mistakes.
Often, the fault is weak materials.
Bolts and other hardware can break, or the frames of the seats can buckle.
The impact can rip them from the floor of the vehicle.
In one case that especially got the attention of auto manufacturers and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a woman burned to death when she was trapped in the back seat under the collapsed front seat, and the car caught on fire.
Children and Front Seat Back Failures Children in the back seat are especially vulnerable to injury if the front seat fall on top of them.
These seat failures have been of great concern to parents who have been told to avoid allowing children to ride in the front seat because of the danger of air bags.
A paper published by the NHTSA in 1997 addressed this issue, stating, "It may be important to assess the injuries caused by the interaction of rear and front seat occupants due to the front seat collapse.
This is especially true with the increased emphasis of placing children in the rear seats.
" Some experts say that the risk to children can be decreased by placing their car seats behind the front passenger's seat and driving without anyone in that front seat.
The seat is not as likely to fall backwards if the weight of a passenger is not putting pressure on it.
Obviously, this is inconvenient for families traveling together.
If there is a rear middle seat, that can also be safer than riding behind a backseat, especially if the rear middle seat includes a shoulder strap safety belt.
The Dispute About Seat Back Safety Regulations Some attorneys and consumer organizations have claimed that manufacturers have settled seat back-related product liability lawsuits discreetly in order to keep defective seat back issues from becoming well-known.
In the opinion of some, the safety requirements as to the strength of seat backs are still not stringent enough.
One argument made by auto manufacturers is that seats that are too rigid can contribute to whiplash.
Nevertheless, research seems to show that the risk of whiplash is not as great as catastrophic injury or death to both front and back seat passengers when a seat back collapses.
Furthermore, a study in Sweden in the 1990's showed that stronger seats could still prevent whiplash as long as the seat padding and head rests were sufficient and properly made.
Even if it collapses, it can be difficult to prove that the injuries were caused by that collapse.
Car manufacturers almost always argue that the collision itself was solely to blame.
Certain law firms specialize in these types of automotive product liability cases and have particular expertise in prosecuting them.
They also are aware of experts in the field who can assess whether or not a seat back collapse contributed to or caused the injuries or deaths involved.