A National Tragedy: Repeated 12- and 15-Passenger Van Rollover Accidents |
According to government statistics, there were over 1,090 occupants killed in crashes involving 15-passenger vans from 1997 to 2006. Recent
high-profile crashes have included: |
- In July 2007, a 10 year old girl was killed when a 15-passenger van blew a tire and overturned while her family was traveling in South Carolina. Despite wearing a lap seat belt, the girl was ejected and died at the scene. Since her death, her family has started the American Center for Van and Tire Safety, a non-profit organization to raise awareness on the dangers of these passenger vans.
- In September 2005, a Utah State University van overturned on a highway
about 65 miles north of Salt Lake City, killing eight students and
an instructor, and injuring two other students.
- In February 2005, in Illinois, two 16-year-old girls were killed
when the 12-passenger van that they were riding in rolled over after
the driver lost control of the van while returning from a ski resort.
- In 2004, three members of a Bronx, New York church group were killed
and nine more injured in the rollover of a Ford van at the Canadian
border. Lieff Cabraser is representing family members.
- In 2003, in East St. Louis, Missouri, a Ford E350 15-passenger van,
used by a local church, fishtailed on wet pavement, veered into a ditch
and turned on its side. A thirteen year old boy was killed in the accident,
and five other children were seriously injured.
- In March 2003, four members of the Coptic Orthodox Community in Northern
California were killed near Barstow, California, when the 2002 Ford
15-passenger van they were traveling in rolled over after the driver
lost control of the vehicle.
- In July 2002, a Ford Super Club Wagon van carrying six cheerleaders
rolled over near Birmingham, Alabama. Five passengers were ejected.
Two were killed. The others suffered injuries ranging from a dislocated
hip to partial paralysis.
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Van Rollover Lawsuits |
In more than 80% of single-vehicle accidents involving
15-passenger vans that resulted in a fatality, the vans rolled over.
Lawsuits filed against van manufacturers claim that they knew the vans
were defective in design and unreasonably dangerous because of its instability
and tendency to roll over.
In a recent lawsuit involving a fatal rollover of a Ford E350 15-passenger
van, Lieff Cabraser alleged that Ford E350 vans have three primary
safety problems: |
- They are difficult to handle under fully loaded conditions because
they are susceptible to over-steering in emergency maneuvers, which
leads to loss of control;
- They are unstable when loaded, leading to a significant increase
in the risk of rollover crashes;
- Once a van rolls over, it is not crashworthy and, as a result, occupants
are killed in what would otherwise have been easily survivable crashes.
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Contact 15 Passenger Van Rollover Accident Lawyer | Attorney |
Persons who have been injured in accidents involving
passenger vans, including 15-passenger, 12-passenger, 10-passenger, or
cargo vans, or family members of loved ones who have died, please contact
a van rollover accident | lawyer at Lieff Cabraser to learn about your
legal rights and for a free case review.
Alternatively, you may call Lieff Cabraser toll-free at 1-866-313-1973
and ask to speak to partner Kathryn E. Barnett. |
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