Automobile rollovers can usually be prevented if vehicles simply stick to traveling at a decent speed. The fact is that most rollovers happen when a vehicle is traveling too fast or tries to negotiate too sharp a turn – which is usually made necessary by driving too fast.
Rollovers are one of many different types of automobile accidents. They happen when the base of a vehicle, including the wheels, loses contact with the road and turns on its side or roof. Most often the result is a violent jarring and tossing about of the vehicle and its passengers.
A skilled driver may sometimes prevent a rollover even when it seems inevitable, by stopping the turn and driving the car on two wheels until the side that’s up in the air has had the time and opportunity to come back down to the road.
While all cars are susceptible to rollovers to some extent, those with a higher center of mass are more susceptible, especially when they are traveling fast. Sport-utility vehicles and mini-vans are especially susceptible to rollovers. Trucks also can often turn over when taking tight corners and of course, trains can roll over after derailing.
To prevent rollovers some four-wheel drive pick-up trucks have reduced steering capacity. But this creates problems with parking and taking very sharp turns.
It doesn't happen often, but rollovers sometimes occur when a vehicle has hit a very large obstacle with one of its wheels while maneuvering over a bumpy road or uneven terrain.
In any accident there is the inherent problem of safely removing the passengers, namely those that are trapped or badly injured. In a rollover situation, the problem is often exacerbated because the vehicle is often upside down and its doors are often blocked. Cars and trucks don’t have emergency exits on their roofs or by way of a window, such as in the case of a bus, tram or trolleybus.
Posted by E. Michael Grossman, Texas Automobile Rollover Accident Lawyer
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