Rollovers are very dangerous and scary. If you were driving or riding in a rolled-over vehicle, you could now have catastrophic injuries. It could take weeks or months to recover, or you may have to live with some disability or disfigurement for the rest of your life.

The risk of getting significant injuries in a rollover accident is higher if you were in an older vehicle at the time of the accident that didn’t have the newest safety technology or if you didn’t fasten your seatbelt.

Whether you were hit by a rolling vehicle or in the car during the accident, a rollover accident lawyer in Fishers, Indiana, can help you determine who was at fault for the accident and pursue damages. The experienced Fishers car accident lawyers at our injury law firm are here to help. We’ll investigate the accident, figure out who caused it, and seek compensation on your behalf.

What Exactly Is a “Rollover” Car Accident?

When a vehicle tips onto the roof or side during a crash, this is a rollover accident. Depending on the force during the collision, the car can roll one time, or it can roll several times before it comes to a stop. Rollover accidents are usually single-vehicle accidents, but they can include more than one. They often result in very severe injuries, and there are several reasons your vehicle may roll over. These include:

Crashing: If you get in a car accident and the other vehicle’s force is strong enough, it can roll the car.
Inclement weather: When the roads get covered in ice, snow, or rain, it can be harder to control your vehicle, and you’re more likely to skid out of control and roll over.
Speeding: If you take a turn too fast or speed around a curve, the tires can lose grip on the road, and this causes a rollover.
Tripping: Tripping is a substantial reason vehicles roll over. It happens when your tires hit something like a ditch or curb. This is enough force to shift the weight to one side, and it causes the car to roll before it can regain balance.
Vehicle type: It’s possible to have a rollover accident with any car, but trucks, SUVs, and vans flip more easily than other types because their center of gravity is higher.

Do Rollovers Occur Very Often?

A violent rollover crash can happen at virtually any speed, and it can cause severe injuries — leaving you with spinal cord damage, a traumatic brain injury, or broken bones — or death. Rollovers make up 3% of all vehicle accidents but account for 30% of passenger fatalities. Also, Indiana crash reports found nearly all deadly rollover accidents are single-vehicle crashes.

Were you in a rollover crash and severely injured, or did you lose a loved one due to the other driver’s negligence? Our Fishers personal injury lawyers can serve as legal advocates to ensure you or your family gets the financial compensation they deserve.

What Are Some of the Factors Contributing to Rollover Accidents?

Several common factors contribute to the severity of your rollover accident. They include:

Driver Error

Driver error is one of the biggest things that lead to rollover accidents nationwide. It can be fatigue or drowsiness, or the driver could be distracted or inattentive.

In addition, aggressive driving, intoxication, oversteering, lack of experience, overloaded or improperly loaded cargo, and new surroundings contribute to driver error.

Equipment and Design Failures

Equipment and design flaws are the root cause of some rollover accidents. You can trace these things to the owner’s negligence, the manufacturer, or a mechanic. A car wreck lawyer can hold a manufacturer liable for design flaws like seatbelt failure, roof crush, door lock failure, head restraint failure, unsafe gas tanks, improper airbag deployment, or electronic stability control failure.

Road Conditions

Unsafe road conditions like construction, bad weather, and debris can cause a rollover accident. In some instances, dangerous situations can be due to poor road maintenance, and your auto accident lawyer can hold government entities liable if this is the case with your accident.

Any victim who files accident claims against any government entity shouldn’t do so without the help of an auto accident attorney familiar with the time limits and specific rules of these entities.

Routine Driving

Did you know that most single-vehicle, fatal rollover accidents were a result of performing routine driving maneuvers like negotiating a curve or going straight at the time of the accident? This tells you that driver behavior, including inattentiveness, distractions, impaired driving, or speeding, plays a considerable role in these types of crashes.

Vehicle Speed

Fatal rollover crashes are much more prone to be related to speeding than fatal non-rollover crashes. Also, it’s more common to be in a deadly rollover accident when you drive on roads with a speed limit of 55 miles per hour or more.

Vehicle Type

While it’s true that any vehicle can roll over in an accident, narrower, taller cars like pickups, SUVs, and vans have higher centers of gravity. This means that they’re easier to roll in a single-vehicle crash.

Documenting the Scene of the Auto Accident

A rollover can happen quickly, but dealing with serious injuries or insurance companies can be time-consuming and challenging. In addition, if another driver’s negligence or recklessness caused the crash, you might need to retain a car accident injury attorney to ensure you get fair compensation.

This is why evidence is so important, and rollovers are no different. Taking photos of the scene can help prove small details about the accident to a jury or the insurance adjusters. Words can’t capture what a photo can, and you want to use them to document your accident scene.

Think about looking at the accident from a bird’s-eye view. These photos aim to get a complete picture of the intersection and road, traffic signals, street signs, every vehicle involved in the accident, and the surroundings. Use photographs to document pedestrian distractions, weather conditions, scenery, and advertisements. Include images of broken glass, skid marks, plastic, and wreck debris. These pictures will help your car injury attorney analyze the scene.

Also, photograph any injuries; you may have someone on the scene document yours. These photos will help document how severe your injuries were months down the line. Property damage is another thing to photograph. While your vehicle should be the primary focus, think of the contents. Did you have a laptop inside that got damaged? There may be a car seat in the back. You want to include these damages in your claim, too, so photograph everything.

What Types of Cases Does SLG Accident Attorneys Handle?

Our talented car injury lawyers at SLG Accident Attorneys can handle various cases for residents in Hamilton County and Fishers, Indiana. These cases include but are not limited to:

Distracted Driver Accidents: Distracted drivers ignore their surroundings as they operate their vehicles and can easily drift into oncoming traffic or strike a stopped vehicle.
Fatal, Serious, and Catastrophic Car Accidents: Some accidents result in wrongful death claims or life-changing injuries or disabilities. Our rollover accident lawyers will help you get the compensation you need to live in your new reality.
Head-On Collisions: Head-on collisions are some of the most devastating accidents you can suffer because the vehicles collide front-to-front, usually at a high rate of speed. These are often fatal car accidents, but can also result in severe neck, back, and spinal cord injuries that can take months or years to heal.
Highway Accidents: Cars travel at high rates of speed on the highways, and distracted driving or road rage can easily cause catastrophic accidents. Multiple cars also can be in the same accident, and our car crash lawyers will get to the bottom and find the responsible party.
Hit and Run Accidents: When a driver strikes you, fails to stop, and flees the scene, this is a hit-and-run accident. This can put you in a vulnerable and challenging position, and our car wreck lawyers will help you seek compensation for your injuries.
Rear-End Accidents: Rear-end accidents are some of the most common in the nation. While these accidents are less likely to be fatal, they can be complicated because your injuries and the severity can vary depending on how the other driver hit you and the speeds. An auto accident attorney can help guide you through the legal process.
Uber and Lyft Accidents: Rideshare apps are very popular but also accident-prone. They can be very complicated cases; you want strong representation to determine who was at fault and adequate compensation. We also handle cases having to do with limo and taxi accidents.
Wrong Way Accidents: These accidents can be devastating and have a high fatality rate. If you or a loved one was involved in a wrong-way accident, our rollover accident attorney could help navigate the litigation process.
T-Bone Accidents: These can be devastating as oftentimes they catch a driver off-guard and unprepared.

How to Choose an Auto Accident Lawyer

A car injury lawyer is a personal injury attorney. It’s easy to get overwhelmed by the sheer number of options you have in your area. Every bus bench, commercial, and billboard advertises another attorney’s services. However, by asking the right questions and examining their credentials, you’ll be able to pick out the best car crash lawyer to be your advocate. You should look at the following:

Clear, honest, and open communication
Experience level
Fee schedule
Professional office or business setting
Respected by their peers

Car Accident Lawyer in Fishers, Indiana

Have you or a member of your family in Hamilton County or Fishers been involved in a rollover accident and sustained injuries? If so, don’t let the statute of limitations run out. The legal team at SLG Accident Attorneys offers a no-obligation, free consultation. You can fill out our secure online form to start or call 317-762-4186.

Some of the locations around Fishers which our car crash lawyers serve include Carmel, Noblesville, Indianapolis, Greenwood, Gary, Highland, Munster, East Chicago, Hammond, Mishawaka, Hobart, Richmond, South Bend, Evansville, and more.