Rollover Accident Lawyer in Queens, NY

A crash is classified as a rollover if a car or truck tips over on its side or rolls onto its roof. Rollover accidents can result in serious, or even fatal injuries. A rollover crash may occur as a result of an impact from another vehicle, hitting a curb, a driver error, an unsafe road, or a design defect that makes a vehicle more likely to overturn.

After a car accident, if you have injuries, New York law requires you to file an initial claim with your own Personal Injury Protection no-fault insurance policy to cover your medical expenses. If your car accident injuries are serious, however, you also may be entitled to seek compensation from the party at fault for the car accident through a claim against their liability insurance or a personal injury lawsuit.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a rollover car accident in Queens, you should consult an experienced car accident lawyer at the Tadchiev Law Firm, P.C. about your legal options to seek compensation. Our Queens car accident attorneys represent individuals who have been hurt in a range of car accidents, including rollovers. We understand how serious rollover accidents can be, how long the recovery from serious injuries may take, and how important it is for you to pursue full compensation for your medical expenses and other losses.

The Tadchiev Law Firm, P.C. is ready to assist you. Contact our knowledgeable rollover car accident attorneys today for a free consultation.

Liability in Rollover Accidents

If you were hurt in a rollover car accident in Queens, you might be wondering how you can seek compensation for your injuries and related losses. Your attorney will need to establish that someone else acted negligently resulting in the rollover crash and that they are therefore legally liable for your injuries.

At its simplest, negligence is a failure to act in a way to avoid harming others. In the case of a rollover accident, a driver could have been acting negligently by speeding, running a red light, or texting while driving. Negligence is not limited to motorists. A road contractor that failed to warn of uneven pavement or a steep road shoulder also may be found to have acted negligently.

An experienced personal injury attorney in Queens, NY can investigate the circumstances of a traffic collision and determine all potentially liable parties.

To do so, they may employ evidence like:

Crash scene photos, videos, and reconstructions
Police reports
Post-crash vehicle assessments conducted by mechanics
Eyewitness accounts
Vehicle/parts recall histories

What Is a Rollover Accident?

Rollover crashes are violent accidents that often occur after a vehicle runs off the road or down an embankment. In a rollover, the occupants may be thrown from the vehicle, especially if they are not wearing seatbelts.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), 28 percent of all traffic fatalities in one recent year involved rollover collisions. More than a quarter of all rollover car accidents happened without an initial impact causing the vehicle to overturn.

What Causes Rollover Crashes?

Some of the most common causes of rollover accidents include:

Speeding: Excessive speed increases the risk of a rollover car accident. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that most rollover crashes occur on roads with speed limits of 55 miles per hour or higher. Speeding increases the likelihood of fatal injuries in a rollover accident. Excessive speed was a factor in 40 percent of fatal rollover crashes, compared to 15 percent of non-rollover fatal crashes. Drivers who speed and cause rollover crashes should be held accountable.
Inclement weather: Wet and icy road conditions reduce a vehicle’s traction, increasing the risk of a vehicle sliding off the road and rolling over. A car traveling at high speed on a road or expressway with standing water may hydroplane and spin out of control. Drivers should use extreme caution when driving in the rain, ice, and snow and lower their speed accordingly.
Hazards in the roadway: Rollover accidents are generally divided into two types: tripped and untripped. Tripped rollovers are those in which the vehicle hits an object such as a curb or guardrail that causes it to overturn.
Driver error: A driver’s actions are sometimes to blame for a rollover accident. Driving too fast, distracted driving, driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and inexperienced driving all increase the likelihood of a rollover car accident.
Poor vehicle design: Vehicles with a higher center of gravity are more prone to overturn, especially after sudden lateral movement. The IIHS found that pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles are more likely to be involved in fatal rollovers than cars. In one recent year, 38 percent of pickup occupant deaths and 39 percent of SUV occupant deaths occurred as the result of rollover collisions, compared to 20 percent of car occupant deaths.

Common Injuries from Rollover Accidents

Injuries from rollover accidents can be very serious, especially for drivers and passengers who are not wearing seatbelts.

Common injuries in rollover accidents include:

Head injuries and brain injuries: Occupants often suffer blows to the head when the vehicle they are riding in overturns. Head injuries can range from mild, such as cuts and bruises, to serious, such as concussions and brain injuries. Serious traumatic brain injuries can lead to life-long disabilities that make it hard to work or perform daily household tasks.
Broken bones: Occupants of vehicles that overturn often suffer fractures because they are violently tossed around, struck by external objects, or ejected from the vehicle.
Bruises: The blunt force trauma of a rollover accident can lead to bruises, either from contact with the interior sides of the vehicle, or airbags and seatbelts. External bruises can also indicate internal bleeding, a serious issue that can become deadly if not treated immediately.

It’s important to understand that not all injuries in rollover accidents are immediately apparent. Some injuries such as internal bleeding or traumatic brain injuries can take hours or days to appear. It’s important to seek medical attention as soon after a car accident as possible so that you are diagnosed and treated in a timely fashion and your injuries are accurately documented. This may come in important if you seek compensation.

Contact a Queens Rollover Accident Lawyer for Help

If you have been hurt in a rollover accident in Queens, the car crash attorneys Tadchiev Law Firm, P.C. wants to help you demand the compensation to put your life back together and recover from your injuries. Let us focus on pursuing justice while you focus on healing. Contact our offices today to discuss your car accident case with an experienced rollover accident lawyer in Queens.