Jury holds that car defect caused serious injuries

When a serious car accident occurs, the people involved can suffer severe injuries in a number of ways. Traditionally, our readers would be correct to believe that, in most cases, the other party that caused the wreck – a drunk or distracted driver, etc. – would be the party to be held liable for the injuries caused in the accident. However, the manufacturers of automobiles sometimes are not without blame.

A recent report noted that Hyundai, a car manufacturer that has put millions of vehicles on the road in America, was found to be mostly liable for the injuries that a Wisconsin man suffered in a car accident that occurred back in 2015. In the collision, in which a young female driver rear-ended the victim’s Hyundai, the man suffered a severed spine.

Obviously, in a situation like this, the driver who rear-ended the vehicle would be the most likely one to be thought to cause any injuries that the victim suffered. However, the severity of the injuries led to the theory that a defect in the seat design of the Hyundai actually made the injuries that the victim suffered much worse than if he had simply been rear-ended in a non-defective car. In a jury trial that took place recently in Wisconsin, the jury agreed with that theory and awarded the victim over $38 million in damages, of which total amount Hyundai is mostly responsible.

Although the tragic accident that this victim was involved in has now led to a seemingly huge jury award in his personal injury lawsuit, this case is an important example of how difficult car accident cases can be. Anyone who has been injured in a car accident will need to take the time to carefully consider all angles that might be pursued in a personal injury lawsuit.