With kids out of school, risk of ATV injuries increases

July 15th, 2008 Mike Evans

With warm weather and kids out of school for summer vacation, it’s not surprising that the number of children being injured on ATVs or UTVs seems to have increased. In the past 24 hours, there have been news articles published about a 14 year-old-boy who was injured in an ATV accident in Oklahoma, a 13-year-old boy who was injured in an ATV rollover accident in California, a 10-year-old girl who was killed in a Missouri ATV accident, and a 9-year-old boy who suffered extensive head injuries in an Indiana ATV accident.

This is a good time to review the recommendations of the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) for ATV safety at ATVSafety.gov. According to the CPSC, ATVs killed more than 500 people in 2006, and almost 1 in 5 was a child. In addition to the deaths, ATV accidents sent 146,600 people to hospital emergency rooms. With the growing popularity of side-by-side ATVs such as the Yamaha Rhino and Polaris Ranger RZR, parents may be tempted to give children rides on the family ATV. Parents should be aware, however, that children need to wear helmets and seat belts. Also, parents should no that some side-by-side ATVs, such as the Yamaha Rhino, can roll over on flat ground at relatively low speeds. And rolling over in an ATV is much more serious than flipping on a bicycle; side-by-side ATVs weigh around 1,000 pounds, and can crush bones, injure spinal cords, cause traumatic brain injuries, and cause death.

Some ATV accidents are caused by driver error. Other accidents are caused by design or manufacturing defects. If you or your family member suffered injuries in a Yamaha Rhino, Polaris or other ATV accident that was caused by a manufacturer’s defect, use our free ATV Lawsuit Review service to obtain a no-obligation review of your potential lawsuit.

Posted in ATV accidents, ATV safety information, Polaris, Rollover accidents, Yamaha Rhino ATV | No Comments »

Polaris expands its recall of defective ATVs due to fire hazard

June 5th, 2008 Mike Evans

On June 4, 2008, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) released a recall annoncement today that warns consumers to stop using certain Polaris ATVs because of a fire hazard. This recall affects about 700 ATVs. About 95,000 have been recalled previously. The ATVs have defective Electronic Control Modules (ECM) that overheat, posing a fire and burn hazard to riders. Since the recall expansion announced in February 2008, Polaris has received four more reports of ECMs melting and two reports of smoke or fire contained to the ECM. No injuries have been reported.

Consumers should disconnect the negative (black) battery cable from the battery when the ATV is not in use. Consumers should contact their local Polaris dealer to schedule a free repair. Registered owners received direct mail notification of this recall. This recall involves 2004 Polaris ATVs. For a complete list of the recalled models, visit the CPSC’s recall announcement.

Posted in ATV recalls, Polaris | No Comments »

Polaris ATV rollover accident injures spinal cord of Indiana man

May 17th, 2008 Mike Evans

An Indiana man is paralyzed from his waist down after having a rollover accident in his Polaris 700 Sportsman all terrain vehicle. According to the Martinsville & Morgan County Reporter-Times, Steffan Paris was riding his 4-wheeler when it flipped on or rolled over on him on May 4, 2008. The Reporter-Times writes: “His wife said that doctors told her his back was broken and there were bone fragments in his spinal cord. “After surgery, doctors said they found that his spinal cord was shredded,” his wife said.”

Tragedies such as this are a good reason to use extreme caution if a person chooses to ride an ATV. Important information about ATV safety can be found at the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s ATV Safety website. According to the website, the CPSC is aware of at least 13 deaths from April 14 through April 23, at least 4 of which involved young people.

If you or someone in your family has been injured in a Yamaha Rhino ATV accident or other accident caused by a defectively designed ATV, or you have lost a member of your family due to such an accident, you can use our free ATV lawsuit review form to get a no-obligation review of your potential lawsuit by lawyers of the ATV Attorney Alliance.

Posted in Polaris, Rollover accidents | No Comments »