In an October 8, 2009 crash safety test, the seat belt of one of Volvo’s 2010 XC60 sport-utility vehicles detached itself from the point of the where the belt is attached to the vehicle.
Volvo reported this design defect verbally to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on November 13, 2009 and a formal letter regarding this case of products liability was sent. Notifications would also be sent to dealers as well as owners. Owners will get their notices in two to three weeks.
A recall was issued by Volvo after a crash test caused a seat belt to become undone. (SOURCE: New York Times)
Our firm’s San Diego car accident attorney know there are many parts of a car that go into the safety of its passengers. Of all the things that are most effective in preventing personal injury or wrongful death, the seat belt is the one item that needs to work without fail. Design defects related to the seat belt need to be fixed swiftly to prevent serious injuries.
Officials at Volvo say the problem was caused by parts inside the housing that cover the anchoring point of the seat belt. The belt itself wasn’t cut, but the impact of the crash caused pressure to be applied to the permanent mount popping the seat belt loose.
Volvo said repairs to fix the problem involve changing the housing of the seat-belt attachment, which is about a 30-minute fix.
Volvo did say that it was one car in one test, but a recall was being issued anyway. Our car accident attorneys in San Diego applaud the “better safe than sorry” attitude being used by Volvo in this case. A preventive measure like this can save lives and prevent personal injury in car accidents.
Please contact us for a free consultation with an experienced car accident attorney — we speak both English and Spanish — at (800) 655-6585. Click here and you may also submit your case for a Free Review. No fee if no recovery.
About Michael PinesMichael Pines is a former insurance company attorney who specializes in car accident injury. While he was an insurance attorney, he learned from behind the scenes on how insurance companies work and how they decided to pay injured people. Now that he works against insurance companies, Michael's inside knowledge has resulted in significant benefits to his clients injured in car accidents.
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