Defective Seatbelts
Seatbelts are a critical safety feature of modern automobiles. In fact, many states and municipalities across the country have passed laws making seatbelt use mandatory to prevent automobile accident injuries and car accident fatalities. When you put on your seatbelt, you trust that it will function properly in the event of a car crash, hopefully protecting you from serious car crash injury.
In the event of a motor vehicle accident, the effectiveness of your seatbelt or safety harness may literally make the difference between life and death. Therefore, a defective seatbelt can be a serious risk to the health and safety of you and your family.
GM Seatbelt Recall
In August 2010, General Motors issued a recall for several SUV crossover vehicles including the Chevy Traverse, Buick Enclave, GMC Acadia, and Saturn Outlook for the 2009 and 2010 model years. GM issued this recall, which applies to over two hundred thousand GM vehicles, because the trim on the second-row seats can damage the seatbelt buckle or trigger the seatbelt release button, potentially causing the seatbelt to fail.
While this seatbelt defect is not yet known to have caused seatbelt failure in a particular automobile crash or have caused any defective product injuries, GM felt the voluntary recall was necessary for the safety of customers.
Owners of the recalled GM vehicles should be notified soon by General Motors. Owners are being instructed to bring their vehicles into a dealership to have the defective seatbelt issue fixed. If you believe you or a loved one has been injured by a defective GM seatbelt, however, you may still have time to begin a defective product injury lawsuit with the help of the defective vehicle injury lawyers of The Cochran Firm.
Defective Vehicle Injury Attorneys
The personal injury lawyers of The Cochran Firm have the experience necessary to defend the rights of injured people nationwide. We not only have an excellent track record of courtroom success but also have the negotiation skills to secure generous defective product injury settlements for our clients.
We believe that companies that manufacture defective products, including vehicles with defective safety belts, should be held accountable for the injuries they cause. For this reason, our defective vehicle injury lawyers strive to get the maximum compensation possible for defective vehicle injury victims.
If you or a loved one has been injured because of a defective seatbelt or another vehicle defect, please contact the defective product liability attorneys of The Cochran Firm today for a free consultation to discuss your legal options.