Seat Belt Failure

Seat belts have long been recognized as preventing bodily harm in car accidents. Like all things, however, they are not foolproof. Seatbelts have been known to fail in a variety of ways during accidents. A few of them are outlined below.

One of the most basic ways in which the seatbelt fails is through inertial unlatching. In this type of failure, the seatbelt is fastened before the crash occurs but the momentum of the crash and the passenger’s body moving forward in inertia cause the seatbelt to come unlatched. This then allows the passenger to make contact with the interior of the car in a harmful way. Since the seatbelt is not around the person properly after the crash, it may look like it was never fastened, even though it most definitely was.

A second problem is false latching. In this case, the seatbelt looks, feels, and sounds like it is thoroughly “clicked in” when the person fastens it. However, this is a case of appearances being deceiving. The buckle is not fully engaged and with the application of force, the buckle will completely release from the latch plate.

Finally, torn or ripped webbing is another potential danger with seat belts. This occurs when the guide mechanism in the shoulder frays or tears at the webbing of the seat belt. It can also occur when there is a piece of the seat that sticks out just enough to tear through the webbing of the seatbelt in an accident.

Contact a Wisconsin Car Accident Lawyer

If you have been injured in a car accident, contact the Wisconsin car accident lawyers of Habush Habush & Rottier, S.C., at 1-800-242-2874.