Rollover Accidents

Rollovers are not as common as some types of accidents on the road, but they can lead to devastating and even fatal harm. At Frankl Kominsky, our car crash lawyers represent West Palm Beach victims of these traumatic events and their families. We can offer the aggressive advocacy and thorough counseling you need to hold those responsible for your injuries accountable for their negligence. Contact our office to learn more about our services and how we can help you.

A rollover occurs when a vehicle’s center of gravity tips to one side, causing it to roll onto its side or roof. These accidents do not happen often, but they are among the more fatal types of crashes. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reported that over 18 percent of fatal Florida car accidents involved a vehicle rollover. These crashes are especially likely to occur if a driver:

• Makes a sharp turn;
• Veers off the road and into a guardrail or shoulder; or
• Trips on a pothole or down a steep slope.

While any type of car can tip over, taller and narrower vehicles like SUVs and vans are more likely to do so because of their high centers of gravity. NHTSA data also found that over 90 percent of fatal single-vehicle rollover crashes involved routine driving maneuvers. This suggests that careless motorist behavior, such as speeding and alcohol consumption, plays a role in many of these accidents.

Known as negligence, the failure to take reasonable care to avoid posing foreseeable risks to others is often the cause of rollover crashes. To assert his or her right to compensation, an accident victim has the burden of establishing the defendant’s negligence. The injured person must show that the defendant had a duty of care and breached this duty with some careless action. He or she also will need to draw a direct causal link from the breach to his or her harm and identify actual damages that were incurred as a result.

If the defendant in your case is the driver of another vehicle, you must prove that his or her behavior amounted to a breach of the duty to use reasonable care behind the wheel. For example, a motorist may violate this obligation if he or she was going too fast while making a sharp turn, causing an SUV to tip over. You must then link the driver’s breach to your injuries. In other words, there must be a close enough connection between his or her actions and the harm you suffered so that it was a foreseeable result of the careless conduct.

Intoxicated or drugged drivers sometimes cause rollover accidents. You can possibly hold an impaired driver liable by using the theory of negligence per se. A person who causes a crash may be deemed negligent as a matter of law if he or she breaks a statute or ordinance intended to protect people like the victim from harm like the accident. Florida’s DUI law, for example, may be useful in this situation. You still would have to prove the elements of causation and damages, since negligence per se substitutes only for the elements of duty and breach.

A road hazard, such as a pothole, can also cause a rollover crash. You may have a claim against the municipality responsible for the maintenance of the road if a pothole or another dangerous condition caused a vehicle to tip over.

If you prove the defendant’s liability, you may be able to recover damages for your medical expenses, property damage, lost income, loss in earning capacity, pain and suffering, and more. If you lost a loved one in a fatal crash, you can seek compensation through a wrongful death lawsuit. Your possible recoverable damages could extend to compensation for your deceased relative’s medical bills, funeral costs, and conscious suffering before death, as well as your own loss of companionship.

Florida has strict time limits on when to file negligence-based injury and wrongful death claims. You must file an injury lawsuit within two years from when the accident occurred. The statute of limitations in a wrongful death action is only two years.

Based in West Palm Beach, the seasoned auto accident attorneys at Frankl Kominsky are prepared to fight for your right to damages against anyone who was responsible for your injuries. We provide clients in communities such as Lake Worth, and Boca Raton with compassionate service and tenacious advocacy to help them seek the compensation they deserve. Call us today at (855) 800-8000 for a free initial consultation. You can also contact us via our online form. We speak Spanish and Creole.