Philadelphia Car Accident Lawyer Blog

In 2004, a 15 passenger church van rolled over. The plaintiffs’ lawyers representing the deceased victims argued that the Ford Motor Company knew that the vehicle had faulty tires but refused to do anything about it. Plaintiffs’ attorney stated to the jury “the evidence is uncontested that Ford made a conscious decision to not communicate information to dealerships and they made a conscious decision not to tell their customers.” The facts of the case alleged that a tread separation and tire defect of the van’s rear right tire, manufactured by Goodyear, caused the accident. Plaintiffs’ attorney claimed that Ford (the manufacturer of the 15-passenger 1993 E-350 Ford Econoline van) knew about the recall and was negligent for never informing its dealers or customers. However, not so surprising in this case, is the fact that Ford claims the deaths of the driver and passenger was due to their not wearing seat belts. The case has not yet gone to the jury.

As an experienced Pennsylvania 15 passenger van and SUV rollover attorney who has investigated and litigated many rollover claims involving tire defects over the years, one thing is for certain, that these vans and SUVs have a higher center of gravity and when fully loaded become very unstable if a tire should experience a blowout due to a defect or the driver enters into a sudden accident avoidance maneuver. I trust that the jury will carefully evaluate all of the evidence and render a just verdict in the California courtroom where this case is being tried. Our hearts and prayers go out to the victims and their families.

I just returned back to Philadelphia from the West Coast and observed a fairly familiar scene which was more horrific to me and should be to any of my readers than any Halloween or haunted attraction, namely a rerun of a scene that I have witnessed all too many times.

While traveling down a highway at a high rate of speed, I saw a 15-passenger van loaded with college students on their way to a sporting event. The van approached a curve at what I consider to be too high a speed, and narrowly avoided rolling over which would have surely resulted in catastrophic injuries and potential deaths to the young occupants. The driver was barely able to prevent a van rollover accident.

As an experienced 15 passenger van and rollover accident attorney for many decades, one can not imagine the horror inflicted upon unknowing and innocent occupants of these vehicles during a normal accident avoidance maneuver which results all too many times in a catastrophic 15-passenger van rollover. Unfortunately, many of the occupants of these vehicles are churchgoers following God’s way or school children on their way to a sporting event or class outing. Last year, over 1,000 people were killed or injured in 15-passenger van crashes. Unfortunately, there is still in excess of 500,000 of 15-passenger vans on America’s roadways. The 15-passenger van was a modified design of a van originally meant to carry cargo. As the 15-passenger van becomes fully loaded with occupants and luggage, the rollover rate increases significantly due to its high center of gravity and extended rear section. If this occurrence is coupled with an inexperienced driver, defective tires, or an accident avoidance maneuver, the horror is unimaginable and often results in the loss of innocent and young lives. The automobile manufacturers and their well versed attorneys will tell you that these vehicles are very safe and have passed many stringent safety tests. However, as an experienced 15-passenger van and rollover attorney, I am aware of internal corporate documents possessed by the automobile manufacturers that clearly indicate the dangers of these vehicles. So the question that begs to be answered is why are they still being used by so many daycare centers, senior citizen centers, churches, sports teams, and schools when they are so extremely hazardous and dangerous. Simply put, automobile and 15-passenger van manufacturers continue to emphasize profitability over safety, and all too many people do not know about the dangers of these vehicles until they receive a frantic phone call informing them of an accident.

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