What to Do If a Vehicle Defect Led to an Accident

Sometimes, a car accident may not have been your fault. Imagine driving behind another driver, the stoplight turns red, and you press on the brakes. But, unlike every other time you’ve stepped on the brakes, this time, the vehicle continues moving forward and hits the back of the driver in front of you.

This is a scenario wherein a defect may be to blame for the accident.

Daimler recalled vehicles for loose brake calipers. So, this scenario is not as unlikely as a lot of drivers assume.

But, while unlikely, the following are common car defects seen in an accident:

  • Airbags deploying too rapidly
  • Airbags not deploying
  • Airbags deploying when they’re not meant to deploy
  • Seatbelts that don’t stay latched during impact
  • Roof collapse
  • Electric defect fires
  • Sudden acceleration

If you know, for sure, that your vehicle did not function properly, you’ll want to call on the help of a professional. There are 2.2 million accidents annually, so there’s a chance that your accident was caused by vehicle factors as experienced in 44,000 of the accidents.

You can start by doing a little research of your own.

Determine if a Recall was Overlooked by You or Previous Owners

Airbags are the biggest recall in recent history, and the Takata Corporation is the one leading the industry in defective airbags. There are some 7.8 million defective airbags that were installed in vehicles.

But, what happens if you have received a recall notice, multiple times, and didn’t correct the issue?

You may not have a case because the manufacturer alerted you of the issue and you failed to have the issue remedied.

Of course, if the accident occurred while waiting for the service to be rendered or you just received the recall notice, you’ll want to document the date of receipt as well as the date of the accident.

Research Common Issues with Your Vehicle

Online forums are filled with car enthusiasts that are talking about all of the issues that a vehicle is facing. You’ll be able to find forums for most vehicles, years and models, so take this time to ask if anyone suffered a similar accident.

You’ll also want to search for any other accounts of a similar accident. Perhaps other drivers had their brakes fail and it led to an accident.

Call on the Help of Experts

Discuss your vehicle’s issues and the events leading to the accident with a lawyer. The lawyer you choose should have experience with defective products and vehicles. And what the lawyer will do is research the potential of a product defect.

Expert may be dispatched to examine the vehicle and components that may have led to the part failure.

This is a very rigorous, long process because automakers will fight back with much deeper pockets than a regular driver. But if an expert does find that a product default caused the accident, you may have a very strong, legal case that may lead to other lives being saved, accidents being avoided and large-scale lawsuits against the manufacturer.

Document the incident from the start to ensure no detail of the accident goes overlooked.