Woman Trapped in Yamaha Rhino Rollover Sues ATV Distributor

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Woman Trapped In Yamaha Rhino Rollover Sues Defective Products

A woman is suing an ATV (all terrain vehicle) distributor for negligence and failure to install a retrofit kit intended to protect the limbs of Yamaha Rhino users. She suffered serious and permanent injuries when the ATV rolled over and crushed her hand – a situation that experts say could have been avoided if Yamaha had recalled the Rhino.
The case
According to an article in the West Virginia Record (www.wvrecord.com), a husband and wife purchased a Yamaha Rhino ATV in 2006. Both were out riding one day – the husband driving and the wife a passenger – when the Rhino rolled over on its side and trapped the wife’s right hand under the vehicle. She suffered serious injuries including the crushing of upper extremities on her right side as well as multiple fractures of both her right hand and fingers.
Her right hand now contains a metal pin and other hardware and she now has a permanently disfigured hand. She sued the distributor where they purchased the Rhino for not installing a retrofit kit intended to keep occupants of the vehicle inside and for allowing defective design defects relating to rollover risks.
Unfortunately, she is not the only one to experience injuries from an ATV.
CPSC reports 150,000 injuries per year
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) reported that nearly 150,000 people were treated in emergency rooms and 555 people died in 2006 due to ATV accidents. Consumer advocate groups and legal experts say that those numbers are far too high and blame certain manufacturers for not doing enough to keep occupants safe.
Cole Portis, an Alabama attorney whose firm represents those who have been injured by the Yamaha Rhino, explained why injuries from Yamaha’s Rhino – the same vehicle driven by the woman in the case above – happen with the Rhino. Portis says that Rhinos made between 2004 and 2007 were not properly tested and have two defects:
It is prone to rollover because the wheel-base is very narrow and the vehicle is also very high. Because of the high center of gravity at low speeds, even those less than 10 miles per hour, the vehicle is prone to rollover.
It doesn’t have any type of barrier to prevent someone’s arms, legs, ankles or feet from being crushed after it tips or rolls over because there aren’t any doors on either side of the vehicle to keep the body parts of the occupant in the vehicle (although the company offers them to consumers).
If you’ve been injured due to the Yamaha Rhino, contact an attorney whose practice focuses in this area of the law. Consultations with a qualified attorney are strictly confidential, free and without obligation. Contact an attorney about your situation.