Seat Failure

When important safety components on automobiles fail during a car accident, occupants are put at risk for serious and potentially fatal injuries. Seats and seat backs are not something we typically think of as failing in the event of a car accident, but in some cases, where parts, manufacturing or design was defective or faulty, occupants are in danger of seat backs failing, coming lose or even crushing them. In order for seat belts and airbags to safely and effectively work, seats and seat backs need to hold steady. The last thing you need during an accident is for your seat back to collapse, putting you at risk for injury and potentially crushing other occupants in the vehicle. After any type of accident involving a suspected defective or faulty automobile part, it’s essential to contact a personal injury lawyer who has proven product liability experience.

Seat Back Collapse  

Seat backs should never collapse in the event of a crash. A seat back collapse is a major failure of an important structural part of the interior of a passenger occupant vehicle. Seat backs must be designed and manufactured to hold up to the potential for car accidents. Even though the vast majority of car accidents are preventable, they’re a fact of life, so vehicles have to be designed and manufactured to high safety standards. No matter how safe you drive, you can’t help what other drivers are doing. You should, at the very least, have confidence in your vehicle’s safety, in the event of a crash. Seat belts and air bags are critically important, but they only work effectively if seat backs stay in their proper and upright position. Listed below are some injuries associated with seat failure.

Injuries Associated With Seat Failure 

Seat Failures in Rear End Crashes 

Unfortunately, seat failures are not uncommon in rear-end crashes. These types of crashes often involve great jolts due to the impact of a vehicle hitting another vehicle from behind. In cars with defective or poorly manufactured seats, this can cause a seat back failure. Even relatively minor rear-end crashes at low speeds can leave passenger occupants with painful soft tissue injuries. Add a seat failure to a rear-end crash, and you could be looking at much more severe injuries. Your seat should never buckle, collapse or fail, just because you were in an accident. Seats should be designed and built to withstand great forces that can occur in accidents.