Crashworthiness

According to NHTSA, every ten seconds someone in the United States is involved in a motor vehicle accident. The fact is that car accidents do occur and they are foreseeable to automobile manufacturers. This means automobile manufacturers have a duty to design cars to protect occupants from injury in certain types of collisions or accidents. Crashworthiness is the ability of a vehicle to prevent or limit injuries when an accident occurs. The failure to timely incorporate known safety features, such as three point safety belts for rear passengers, is often the issue in dispute in a crashworthiness claim or case. Other areas of recent concern include roof crush, side impact air bags, crumple zones, occupant ejection, roll-over propensity and side impact safety.