Should I sue the dealership?

Question

I was in a HEAD ON COLLISION today with my cousin and her baby in the car. We were hit by a car that had crossed the line and hit us in our lane head on..... my cousin and I were taken to the hospital by ambulance, but thankfully we just have bruises and whip lash... but as the police officer was talking to us he was talking about how the air bags didn't deploy on either side of the car.

Let me tell you my car was totalled. So I was wodering if I should sue the dealership or not?

Answer 1

If before the accident you have gone to a trashy looking place to fix you car they might have stone the air bag there called chop shops it makes it harder to track stolen items, If not YYYYYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSS...

Answer 2

it looks like the manufacturer's fault, not the dealer

Answer 3

Why would you sue the dealership. It wasn't their fault the guy came across and hit you. If you don't get a fair settlement from his insurance, you could pursue legal action. Otherwise it is pointless.

Answer 4

sounds like you need to talk to a lawyer. the air bags should have went off.

Answer 5

If you bought the car used, that's a risk you take.  You could try, I mean people have won lawsuits with less to work with but it won't be easy.

Answer 6

yes!! thats crazy!!! i cant believe that happend!! im glad you and ur cuz were okay!!

Answer 7

Both the dealership and the manufacturer could be liable. If you bought this car used, check if its been wrecked previously.

If it was wrecked and repaired previously, the repair could be substandard. If the dealership purchased this car (to sell to you) and does not disclose to you that this car was wrecked and has a salvaged title, they would completely liable.

If you bought this car new, you would have a good case with the manufacturer, but new cars are very well built. Safety items are where automakers do not skimp on, there is huge liability there as you can imagine. But if the car's been wrecked previously, the automaker has no control as to who fixes it and how its fixed. Your insurance company would know the cars history.

Answer 8

I don't know if you can sue the dealership but you may be able to bring suit against the automaker itself. If your car has been properly maintained and the airbags inspected at the proper factory intervals. You may have some sort of a case. It may not hurt to talk to a lawyer.

Answer 9

You should contact your local dealer as well as the manufacturers Customers Service Department and open a case.

If a customer believes their vehicle is defective -- or didn't deploy when it should have -- they can certainly contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Take digital pictures and get the police report.

The car should be equip with a Electronic Data Recorder (EDR) and do not let the dealership remove this at all.

Speak with a lawyer and also see what the manufacture tells you..

Answer 10

yaaa you should at least freakin complain what kind of a car has no airbags on the side....a piece of c**p possibly! If a police officer was saying that thann obviously it means something.

Answer 11

Maybe the manufacturer is liable , but certainly not the dealership, they sold the car ,they didn`t make it. Get a lawyer to see where you stand. Why are you so quick to want to sue someone? Maybe your car was in disrepair to begin with. If you had  hit hard enough to deploy the airbags and they didn`t , I seriously doubt that all you would have is a few bruises and whiplash.

Answer 12

I do not believe you could sue the dealership.  You would have to prove that they knew it was faulty to get anything out of them.

You could sue the car manufacturer and the company that makes the airbags.  It would be a long shot though because they have enough money to afford really high power lawyers.

Your best bet would be to go after the person that caused the accident.  It sounds like there were no injuries that were directly related to the airbags not deploying (face hitting steering wheel, etc)  but, the other car's insurance should pay for all your medical expenses, plus extra for time off work, pain and suffering, etc.  If the person was drunk, you could go after them for more.

You should definatley talk to a lawyer though.  most give free consultations to see if you have a case.  most won't charge you unless they win your case.

p.s.  i'm glad no one was seriously injured.

Answer 13

well its not their fault you didnt make sure the equipment worked,

you have no case