Manufacturer defect

Most auto accidents are caused by driver error. In fact, according to the National Motor Vehicle Crash Causation Survey, driver error was the primary cause of more than 90 percent of all car accidents. Yet, considering how many total highway accidents occur, this still leaves a considerable gap.

Manufacturer negligence is responsible for many of the other crashes. Indeed, every year, thousands of innocent victims are severely injured due to the careless of vehicle and auto parts manufacturers. Even worse, many relatively minor accidents are frequently made far worse than they should be because of vehicle-related safety defects.

Large companies cannot be allowed to put profits over people. The safety of you, your family and everyone else on the road must always come first.

Common manufacturer defects that cause auto accident injuries

Manufacturer defects come in a wide variety of forms. In some cases, a defect is the cause of the accident itself. In other cases, a manufacturer defect makes an accident far worse, turning what should have been a minor crash into a very serious situation. Ultimately, any component of a motor vehicle might potentially be the source of the problem.

Some of the most common manufacturer defects that have been known to cause serious car accident injuries include:

• airbags that fail to deploy, explode or cause burns;
• seat belts that fail to properly restrain occupants;
• defective tires “blowing out”;
• brake problems;
• an accelerator pedal that sticks;
• roof-related problems;
• SUVs and truck prone to rollover accidents;
• electrical system problems;
• defects with the vehicle’s frame or chassis;
• an unsafe gas tank or fuel line; and
• unsafe vehicle design.

How to prove liability in a Nevada manufacturer defect case

Essentially, these types of cases can be brought under three different legal theories:

Negligence

First, an auto manufacturer defect case can be brought under Nevada’s comparative negligence statute. Essentially, to prevail in this type of lawsuit, you will need to be able to prove that the manufacturer carelessly put an unsafe product on the market. The unlawful carelessness could have occurred within any of the following stages of the production process:

• Design;
• Manufacturing; or
• Marketing.

If you can prove that a manufacturer’s negligence, at least partially, contributed to your injuries, then you can hold the company legally liable for your damages. These cases require considerable investigation. Often, the negligence occurred because the company failed to conduct proper safety tests or rushed the product onto the market before it was ready.

Strict liability

As Nevada is a strict liability state, you may not need to prove negligence to recover compensation for a manufacturing defect. In strict liability cases, the victim must simply show that they were injured by a flaw in the product.

Clearly, this is a much lower bar than is required in standard negligence cases. One complicating factor is that you cannot bring a strict liability case in Nevada if you purchased a product from a second-hand source.

Breach of warranty

You may also have a breach of warranty claim against the responsible auto manufacturer. There are two types of breach of warranty claims:

• Express warranty; and
• Implied warranty.

Essentially, these types of claims involve safety guarantees that the manufacturer or marketer either directly or indirectly made to the consumer. If the actual product failed to live up to the safety promises made by the company, then the manufacturer might be liable for the victim’s damages.

Full and fair compensation for victims of a manufacturer defect

Under Nevada law, a negligent manufacturer can be held liable for the full value of your accident damages.

However, it must be noted that manufacturers are typically represented by very large insurance companies. These big insurance companies have developed many different tactics and strategies to try to limit a victim’s ability to recover full compensation.

Your attorney may be able to help you obtain compensation for:

• damage to your vehicle;
• emergency medical expenses;
• hospital bills;
• required medication or medical equipment;
• physical rehabilitation;
• lost current and future wages;
• long-term disability;
• pain and suffering;
• mental distress;
• disfigurement;
• loss of life enjoyment;
• punitive damages;
• wrongful death damages.