Door Latch Design Defect

Our firm has successfully handled multiple door latch defect cases against several automobile manufacturers. In fact, our firm has the largest verdict against any automobile manufacturer for a door latch defect.

In the case of Hardy v. General Motors, we obtained a $150 million verdict for our client who was rendered a quadriplegic when the door latch failed and his vehicle door opened, ejecting him from his vehicle.

In a door latch defect case, the door latch fails allowing the vehicle's door to open in a collision. To be crashworthy, a vehicle's doors must stay closed during a wreck. Weak and defectively designed door latches may cause the vehicle door to open during a wreck. When the door opens, the vehicle's occupants may be ejected or thrown from the vehicle. Injuries to ejected occupants are often fatal or catastrophic.

After the wreck, the door is observed to be ajar or shows signs of damage from being open during the accident sequence. Door latch failures can occur in many types of wrecks, including rollovers, frontal impacts, side impacts, and rear impacts.

Numerous documents uncovered during our work in prior cases have revealed that the automakers are aware that door latch failures are injuring and killing vehicle occupants in many types of wrecks. Multiple stronger door latch designs exist and are equipped in many other vehicles. These safer door latch designs would protect vehicle occupants from serious injury caused by door latch failure.

If you or family members have suffered injuries as the result of a door latch failure, you need an experienced automobile defect lawyer to maximize your recovery. Contact us today.