The Georgia State Court jury awarded the plaintiff $371,002 to compensate for pain and suffering, medical expenses, lost wages, lost future wages, and loss of consortium. The case is one of dozens of other such cases filed against Yamaha in Gwinnett County, Georgia, where the company’s registered agent for the United States is located.

According to the complaint, the victim brought his Rhino to a stop and then began moving the vehicle forward as he turned the steering wheel right, “and the Rhino tipped onto the driver’s side, trapping his leg under the vehicle.” The weight of the vehicle crushed the plaintiff’s leg, shredding his skin while smashing and exposing his bone.

The case was considered a pivotal one in the legal community because it tested the viability of several other lawsuits filed against Yamaha in the same county. The jury’s verdict indicates that plaintiffs with cases involving similar or worse injuries will likely receive compensation, especially those cases filed in Gwinnett County.

The trial lasted two weeks and the jury deliberated for 10 hours before reaching its verdict. According to some reports, one of the jury’s biggest concerns was that Yamaha never tested its Rhinos for “occupant containment.” Had the company conducted such tests, it would have seen the problem, the jury believed. Almost all serious injuries on Yamaha Rhinos occur during rollovers when the limbs of the vehicle’s occupants protrude from the vehicle.

Drivers and passengers experience a higher rate of injury and death in Rhinos than in other recreational off-road vehicles (ROVs) and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs). Consumer and safety advocates assert Rhinos are dangerous because of their design flaws, including a narrow, top-heavy stance that makes the vehicle prone to roll over, even while when traveling across even surfaces at a low rate of speed.

Yamaha issued a statement after the verdict, saying that the company “is disappointed by the jury’s decision to find for the plaintiff in this case and will pursue all appropriate legal remedies, including possible appeal.”

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Plaintiff wins landmark case in Georgia for Yamaha Rhino injuries

According to a press release from the Hubbard County, Minnesota, Sheriff’s office, Tabaka lost control of the vehicle, which caused it to leave the road and strike a tree. The accident was reported about 6 p.m. in Steamboat River Township.

Emergency workers declared Christopherson, a resident of Benedict, Minn., dead at the scene of the accident. Tabaka was taken to North Country Regional Hospital with a broken collarbone and fractured vertebra. The hospital listed him in good condition.

Authorities continue to investigate possible causes of the accident. Both Christopherson and Tabaka were wearing helmets, but ATV collisions and rollovers often result in body trauma despite protective head gear. The Honda TRX is a quad style vehicle, requiring the driver and passenger to straddle the frame. Because the vehicles lack roll bars, seat belts, and other protective features to contain the riders, quad collisions are exceptionally dangerous.

According to a recently published report by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), there were an estimated 816 ATV-related fatalities in 2007, the agency’s most recent estimate. In 2008, an estimated 134,900 people were treated in hospital emergency rooms for injuries sustained in ATV accidents. However, these numbers do not include Yamaha Rhinos and other side-by-side style vehicles, which the federal government now classifies with golf carts as recreational off-highway vehicles (ROVs).

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › ATV crash kills Minnesota woman, injures another

Polaris says that the front suspension on the recalled vehicles can separate from the steering knuckle, which causes the driver to lose the ability to steer the vehicle and could lead to serious injury or death if not corrected. No injuries have been reported as a result of the defect.

Vehicles included in the recall are the 2009 Sportsman XP 550, 2009 Sportsman XP 550 EPS, 2010 Sportsman 550, 2010 Sportsman X2 550, 2010 Sportsman Touring 550, 2009-2010 Sportsman XP 850, 2009-2010 Sportsman XP 850 EPS, and 2010 Sportsman Touring 850.

Only vehicles with certain VIN numbers in the group are affected by the recall. The CPSC advises owners of the recalled models to locate the VIN number and manufacture date on the frame rail next to the shock on the front right side of the vehicle. Vehicle owners should then contact their local Polaris dealer to see if their VIN number is subject to the recall.

The recalled ATVs were sold by Polaris dealerships throughout the nation from February 2009 through November 2009.

The CPSC urges owners of the affected models to stop using their ATVs immediately. If the vehicle is confirmed by the dealership to be defective, the owner is entitled to a free repair.

For more information on the recall, contact Polaris toll-free at (888) 704-5290 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Central Mon. through Friday or visit the company’s website at www.polarisindustries.com.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Polaris recalls Sportsman ATVs for possible loss of steering

Mississippi remains one of the few states with almost no laws restricting the use of ATVs. As a result, the number of ATV-related injuries and deaths in Mississippi is three times higher than in most other parts of the country.

Tragically, in Mississippi, children are too often the victims of the dangerous vehicles, and there is a growing feeling that the state’s lack of legislation governing their use and safety represents a big part of the problem.

Two days before Christmas, in Warren County, Mississippi, an ATV accident claimed the life of 15-year-old Caitlin Lopez, who was driving a Yamaha Big Bear when “suddenly it flipped,” according to Jackson NBC affiliate WLBT. The accident injured 6-year-old twin sisters Kimberly and Kaylee Madison, who were passengers in the Yamaha when it rolled over.

“Knowing that they’re here and that they’re walking and talking and breathing. It is remarkable to me,” Selena Madison, the mother of the twins, told WLBT.

Last year, Coroner Gillentine-Green pronounced the deaths of 20-year-old Crystal Hooper and her 5-year-old cousin Natalie Aguilar, who were killed when the ATV they were on crashed. According to available reports, Hooper lost control of the ATV and ran into a trailer full of building supplies. Both Hooper and Aguilar sustained head injuries in the accident.

But will adding new legislation, such as requiring the use of helmets, help reduce the number of ATV-related injuries and fatalities? Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace says it will.

“I attribute at least some of this to Mississippi’s lack of legislation,” Pace told WLBT, referring to the recent spate of ATV crashes that claimed the lives of Mississippi teens and children.

But Sheriff Pace also believes that the vehicles are dangerous to start with, and that anyone riding them should be extremely cautious, no matter what the laws are.

“In 2009, we’ve lost two beautiful teenage girls to four wheeler accidents. And they’re just inherently dangerous vehicles,” Pace said.

Two Mississippi legislators, Gray Tollison (D) and Dannie Reed (R) are also calling for better legislation.

“We need to consider legislation this session to decrease the increasing number of ATV deaths and serious injuries, especially children. I believe that the passage of a law requiring the use of a helmet and required training for persons without a drivers license would go a long way to reduce the number of ATV deaths and serious injuries in Mississippi,” Tollison said in a statement.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › ATV deaths prompt Mississippi to consider better ATV legislation

Investigators at the scene said that the crash was likely the result of the front left tire coming off of Case’s vehicle. The tire disengagement apparently caused Case to run the ATV headlong into a tree. Authorities said that the boy was not wearing a helmet.

Case was rushed to South Williamson Appalachian Regional Hospital in South Williamson, Kentucky, where emergency physician Brandon Haake pronounced him dead.

Case attended Belfry High School in Belfry, Kentucky. According to the school principal, who spoke with the Williamson Daily News, Case was well liked by his fellow students.

“The young man was a senior and well liked at the school. I don’t know anyone who didn’t like Andy,” Principal Rod Varney told the Daily News.

“Any time you lose a student it’s devastating to the school. It is a difficult time for everyone,” Varney told the Daily News. “Somebody lost a child, somebody lost a friend and then we all lost a student.”

According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Kentucky leads the nation in the number of ATV-related fatalities. The CPSC says that 367 ATV-related deaths were reported in Kentucky in 2006 alone, and incomplete numbers for the following years show that ATV fatalities continue to escalate. Tragically, about one-third of all the reported ATV deaths in Kentucky are children.

Pennsylvania, California, West Virginia, and Texas are other states with an unusually high rate of deaths caused by ATV accidents.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Kentucky teen dies in Christmas day ATV crash

Because more than 500 lawsuits have been filed in federal courts throughout the U.S., a “bellwether” approach is being taken to manage the caseload. A group of plaintiffs will be selected to represent all of the other plaintiffs in the case. Bellwether trials are occasionally formed when large numbers of plaintiffs file suit and proceed on the same theory or claim. The verdict from these trials will be extrapolated to the other plaintiffs’ cases, and will indicate the trends in all remaining cases. The multidistrict litigation (MDL) could also lead to a settlement.

Nearly all Rhino lawsuits filed against Yamaha claim that the vehicles have design flaws and lack key safety features, both of which make the vehicles unstable, prone to roll over, and unusually dangerous. The Rhino’s narrow frame and track width and its high center of gravity have played a role in hundreds of rollovers and crashes since the vehicle’s debut in 2003. Most plaintiffs claim that the vehicles were being operated appropriately and responsibly when the accidents occurred, often on level ground and at low speed.

The first of the MDL trials is scheduled to start on October 18, 2010 and will involve a case brought by a Kentucky woman. Subsequent cases are scheduled to be heard on November 15, November 29, December 13, and January 10, 2011.

Yamaha issued a safety recall of all Rhino vehicles last spring and ordered its dealerships to stop selling all Rhino models until a series of safety upgrades could be completed on each new vehicle.

On August 27, a Texas jury cleared Yamaha in a case brought by the parents of Forrest “Eddie” Ray, a 13-year-old boy who was killed when the Rhino he was driving flipped. Although seen as a landmark trial and victory for Yamaha, the boy’s father testified that his son had been driving a modified Rhino and was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Federal Yamaha Rhino cases set for multidistrict litigation next year

Jurors deliberated for about 2 hours before reaching their verdict.

During the trial, Mike Burleson, who works for System Engineering & Laboratories, testified on behalf of the plaintiffs. The engineering expert said that the Rhino’s narrow stance, high center of gravity, stiff suspension, and other characteristics amounted to problems with its lateral stability, meaning that it is prone to roll over even at speeds lower than 12 mph.

Many ATV enthusiasts applauded the jury’s decision, saying that it sets a precedent in Yamaha’s favor. But does it? Approximately 500 lawsuits have been brought against Yamaha by Rhino victims and their family members. The number of federal and state lawsuits continues to climb.

The case may not set a precedent for all Rhino lawsuits, but it may set a precedent for similar Rhino lawsuits – those that involve child drivers, especially if the children weren’t wearing safety helmets or seat belts. In such cases, Yamaha’s defense will undoubtedly have an easier time blaming operator error and perhaps the oversight of the parents.

Eddie Ray’s father, Johnny Ray, told the court that his son had years of experience riding ATVs and dirt bikes.

“If I’d thought it was dangerous, I’d have put a helmet on him,” he told the court. “I figured it was like a golf cart, the same thing I drove as a kid. Buckle up and it will keep you safe in there. I didn’t think I would be putting my son in danger,” Ray testified.

Eddie Ray’s tragic death will likely underscore how important it is for parents to take every possible precaution when allowing children to drive or ride in ATVs, especially ones known to have instability problems.

Basic physical restrictions should be followed, including wearing helmets and safety restraints, allowing minors to drive age-appropriate ATVs only, and staying off of paved roads. Additionally, some safety advocates recommend that parents also gauge their child’s intellectual and emotional maturity before allowing him or her to drive an ATV.

Even with all the safety measures taken, it’s still important for parents to realize that ATVs can still roll over, behave unpredictably or fail to keep occupants safe, even when driven responsibly.

For a guide to child safety and ATVs, click here.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Texas jury clears Yamaha in Rhino rollover case

An attorney for the plaintiffs told the jury that the company chose to put profits over people when it made the Rhino, a vehicle he described as a cross between a golf cart and an all-terrain vehicle.

“Yamaha knew for years it was a defective design and would roll over and kill people,” he told the courtroom. He also described the design flaws that many critics say make the vehicles unstable, namely their narrow track width, disproportionate height, and lack of a rear differential.

“It’s too small and too narrow and goes too fast to be safe,” he said.

Yamaha’s lawyers vigorously defended the Rhino, saying that they are safe when handled properly.

“Accidents and injuries occur because of the operator’s unsafe conduct,” one of Yamaha’s attorneys said in a sweeping statement that contradicted a body of evidence that shows Rhinos can easily roll over even when driven at low speeds and on flat terrain.

The Rhino’s propensity to roll over first came to light in July of 2002, when the vehicle was in its prototype stage and being test driven by Yamaha executives. That was when a Yamaha vice president injured his foot when the Rhino he was driving with a colleague rolled over. Company minutes obtained by CBS News showed that Keisuke “Casey” Yoshida, the President of Yamaha’s U.S. operations, requested an “update on instability of vehicle for future liability cases.”

Earlier this month, the Consumer Products Safety Commission issued a special advisory urging the owners of Rhinos and other all-terrain vehicles to exercise extreme caution while driving them this summer.

In March, the CPSC said it was investigating about 50 incidents involving the Yamaha Rhino, including 46 driver and passenger deaths. The announcement was made at the same time the agency issued a recall notice of all Yamaha models.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Jurors in first Rhino rollover case hear accusations against Yamaha

Forest “Eddie” Ray was killed on September 13, 2007 while operating a Yamaha Rhino near his home in Orange County, Texas, about 50 miles southeast of Houston. School was closed for the day as Hurricane Humberto approached the area, giving Ray some free time to enjoy the family ATV.

Reports say that Ray tried to maneuver the Rhino from grass onto a paved road when the rollover occurred. Ray sustained a fatal head injury when the vehicle rolled over onto him, crushing his head. His parents allege in the lawsuit that Yamaha made and marketed a product they knew to be defectively designed and prone to roll over. They also accuse Yamaha of skimping on costs by not installing vital safety features.

Earlier this year, Yamaha attorneys argued that the fine print on an agreement signed by the plaintiffs at their Yamaha dealership precluded the plantiffs’ right to take their grievances to trial. Court documents showed that the plaintiffs’ finance agreement from the dealership contained an arbitration clause.

The court denied Yamaha’s motion to force arbitration on June 30. An appeal was rejected on July 16. The trial opened on August 17 in the 163rd Judicial Court in Orange County, Texas before a jury of eight men and five women.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › First Yamaha Rhino lawsuit goes to trial

Ike Miyachi, a Yamaha vice president in charge of developing the Rhino, was riding in a prototype driven by Keisuke “Casey” Yoshida, the President of Yamaha’s U.S. operations, when the vehicle rolled over after descending a hill, injuring Miyachi’s foot.

According to company minutes obtained by CBS, Yoshida raised the safety issue during a meeting weeks after the initial rollover. “Casey wants update on instability of vehicle for future liability cases,” Yoshida noted.

Despite early signs that the Rhino had dangerous flaws, Yamaha took the vehicles to market in the fall of 2003. Unlike anything else on the ATV market at the time, the Rhinos became an instant hit. Now, almost six years after the Rhino’s debut, the Consumer Product Safety Commission says that at least 59 people have been killed in Rhino rollovers. Thousands more people have been injured with bone fractures, loss of limbs, and head injuries. More than 440 wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits against Yamaha are pending in U.S. courts. Many others have been settled out of court.

Most of the complaints cited in Rhino lawsuits relate to the vehicle’s fundamental design flaws: its narrow track width, high center of gravity, and lack of a rear differential, which make the Rhino unstable and exceptionally prone to roll over.

Some complaints allege that the vehicle’s restraint system is flawed. Seat belts can fail, leading occupants to become ejected or partially ejected from the vehicles. Still other complaints involve the lack of doors or bars that would prevent occupants from intentionally or reflexively sticking their arms or legs out of the vehicle during a rollover.

As the number of ATV rollover deaths and injuries rises with the number of vehicles sold, many safety experts say that merely warning consumers about dangerous flaws is no longer enough. Instead, they say, Yamaha and other manufacturers need to step up and create safer vehicles.

At the same time, the CPSC finally seems to be toughening its stance after years of being too lenient on manufacturers, starting back when ATVs first appeared in the mid 1980s. In 1987, the CPSC sued Yamaha and four other companies for creating and distributing an “imminently hazardous consumer product.”

Then, in an effort to reduce rollovers, the CPSC wanted to impose stability standards on ATV manufacturers. But the manufacturers fought back and won, simply promising to not make future vehicles any more dangerous than they already were.

Warnings, instead of real safety features, became the industry standard and effectively passed all liability to the consumer. According to the CBS report, “warnings about all manner of possible driver errors strengthened the industry’s hand in liability cases. The companies suddenly had a “buffet of defenses” against almost any claim.”

CBS raised the issue of ATV safety to Carrol Pollack-Nelson, formerly a CPSC psychologist and now a safety adviser to corporations. Pollack-Nelson said that the strict reliance on warnings to prevent accidents isn’t working. “You have a product that’s inherently got some pretty serious dangers,” and people use it “the way they think it’s intended to be used,” she said. “They’re not trying to drive their granny to the store … It goes fast, it goes over bumps, it goes over open terrain. Why else would they have bought the thing?”

According to the CPSC, ATV injuries serious enough to require emergency room treatment almost tripled from 52,800 in 1997 to 150,900 in 2007. The number of deaths exceeded 500 in 2001, topped 650 in 2003, and surpassed 800 in 2005. ATV deaths and injuries continue to climb despite efforts by Yamaha and other manufacturers to toughen the warnings.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › CBS casts spotlight on Yamaha Rhino flaws, instability

The boy’s parents filed the wrongful death lawsuit against Yamaha and its subsidiaries on November 5, 2007, alleging that the Rhino’s poor design and inadequate safety features directly contributed to their son’s death. The Rhino is notorious for its narrow track width and wheels, which, combined with its high center of gravity, make the vehicle unstable and prone to roll over.

Engineers gave the Rhino a narrow gait so that it would fit in the back of a standard pickup truck. That convenience feature, however, has translated into a safety hazard that has caused dozens of deaths and hundreds of serious injuries since the Rhino was first introduced in the U.S. in 2003. According to the CPSC, many Rhino rollovers “appear to involve turns at relatively low speeds and on level terrain.” The plaintiffs’ son died from the fatal injuries he received when the Rhino he was in rolled over.

Yamaha had hoped the fine print on an agreement signed by the plaintiffs when they bought the Rhino at a dealership would prevent the case from going to trial.

Court documents show that the plaintiff’s finance agreement from the dealership contained an arbitration clause.

However, because the company did not file a motion to compel arbitration until June 1, the plaintiffs successfully argued that Yamaha had waived its right to arbitration and therefore invoked the judicial process.

The court denied Yamaha’s motion to force arbitration on June 30. An appeal was rejected on July 16. The trial is currently scheduled to begin on August 17 of this year in the 163rd Judicial Court in Orange County, Texas.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Yamaha loses fight to force arbitration in Texas lawsuit

Van Beveren, a resident of Holland, Mich., was thrown from the vehicle when the Rhino struck the tree. According to a report in the Grand Haven Tribune, Dietrich called some residents of a nearby house, who rushed to the scene before calling 911. Emergency responders had trouble spotting the scene of the accident at first because it was located nearly a mile off the main road in an apple orchard.

The emergency workers transported van Beveren to a landing zone and then airlifted her to Spectrum Butterworth Hospital in Grand Rapids. On June 26, the morning following the accident, doctors said van Beveren was in critical condition with multiple, unspecified injuries.

The Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department is still investigating the crash.

Yamaha Motor Corporation vigorously defends the safety of its Rhino UTVs, which have become the subject of numerous lawsuits involving Rhino drivers and passengers who are seriously injured or killed. The manufacturer announced a repair program on March 31 and suspended all Rhino sales until the vehicles were equipped with a series of safety upgrades. Although Yamaha says that the repair program is not a recall, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission urged Rhino owners to avoid using their UTVs until the upgrades could be made.

Approximately 120,000 Yamaha Rhinos have been sold in the U.S. since they debuted here in fall 2003. Many Rhino enthusiasts say the vehicles are perfectly safe to drive and accidents are strictly the driver’s fault. However, critics of the UTV say that the vehicles’ numerous design flaws, such as narrow track width, narrow wheels, and high center of gravity, make them highly unstable and more prone to roll over than other all terrain vehicles.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Michigan woman in critical condition after Rhino accident

Wyatt, who was an only child, was eager to take the Rhino out for a spin on the day the local Yamaha dealership delivered the vehicle to the family farm. Wyatt spent the better part of the day on May 28 test driving the brand-new Rhino with a school friend. Then, in the late afternoon, the rollover occurred in a field about 500 yards from Wyatt’s house.

Wyatt suffered severe head trauma in the rollover and was pronounced dead shortly after arriving by ambulance to an ER in Albany. Wyatt’s friend was not injured in the accident.

According to his parents, Wyatt had lots of experience driving ATVs and dirt bikes on the farm. Jim Spencer said the dealer that sold him the Rhino never mentioned the massive recall of all Rhino UTVs issued jointly by the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission and Yamaha Motor Corporation on March 31, 2009.

“It broke my heart,” Mr. Spencer told Albany, New York’s NEWS10. “If I found out what I found out after, I would have never bought this machine,” he said.

The dealership maintains that Mr. Spencer knew the vehicle had to be retrofitted with safety upgrades and thus the recall was implied.

Investigators and lawyers for both Yamaha and the Spencers met in Knox last week to inspect the vehicle and the scene of the accident.

“I don’t want to see anybody else get killed,” Jim Spencer told NEWS10.

“Whatever other investigation needs to be done in this field, I am all for it.”

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Parents of Rhino rollover victim may sue Yamaha

According to the lawsuit, the rollover occurred on “relatively flat terrain.” The vehicle tipped over on the passenger side where the plaintiff was seated.

Like many other lawsuits pending against Yamaha in the Unites States, the suit filed in Texarkana claims that the Rhino “was placed in the stream of commerce in a defective condition, unreasonably dangerous to the users thereof, and not fit for its intended use and reasonably foreseeable purposes.”

The suit also claims that warnings and operating instructions for the Rhino were negligently inadequate.

The plaintiff seeks damages for health care expenses, physical pain and suffering, mental anguish, physical disability and impairment, disfigurement, lost wages, loss of wage earning capacity, loss of consortium, loss of household services, pre- and post-judgment interest.

46 deaths and hundreds of injuries in the U.S. have been attributed to the Yamaha Rhino’s defective design and performance. The unusually high number of deaths and injuries linked to Yamaha’s signature UTV prompted the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission to recall the vehicles last March. Owners may take their Rhinos to their local dealership to have a series of safety improvements installed. No new vehicles are to be sold until the same upgrades have been completed.

More than 200 product liability lawsuits have been filed in U.S. courts by Rhino victims and their families.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Texas woman seeks damages for injuries sustained in Rhino rollover

The rollover occurred on Monday evening when Camarillo apparently lost control of the Rhino. According to the local coroner’s investigator, Camarillo was thrown from the vehicle. He was not wearing a safety belt. Investigators do not yet know what caused the driver to lose control of the UTV and roll over.

The Desert Sun reports that aside from Camarillo and the passenger who was airlifted in critical condition, four others received injuries as a result of the rollover. All were transported to area hospitals.

The accident occurred nearly two months after the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and Yamaha Motor Corporation issued a safety recall of all Rhino models (450, 660, and 700). The CPSC announced the recall after investigating 50 Rhino accidents. Although many of the reports investigated by the CPSC involved unbelted passengers, the agency found that several of the accidents appeared to result from design flaws that critics claim make the UTVs unstable.

120,000 Rhinos have been sold since the vehicles first appeared on the U.S. market in the fall of 2003. Since then, Rhinos have been blamed on nearly 50 deaths and hundreds of injuries. Consumers have filed approximately 200 lawsuits against Yamaha in U.S. courts, alleging the Rhinos to be dangerously unstable, even when driven on flat terrain and at low rates of speed.

The CPSC has advised all Rhino owners to stop using the vehicles until a local dealer has made the appropriate safety upgrades to the vehicles. Additionally, Yamaha has instructed its dealerships to stop selling Rhinos until the improvements are made. Yamaha is also giving free helmets to Rhino owners who schedule their vehicles for the safety upgrades.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Rhino rollover kills California man, injures 5 others

The CPSC’s investigation of Rhino accidents found that an unreasonably high number of rollover-related deaths and injuries occurred while the vehicles were driven at low speeds and on flat terrain. Since 2003, when the Rhino first debuted on the U.S. market, it has been blamed for 46 deaths and hundreds of injuries, many of which are serious and life-altering. Consumers have filed some 200 lawsuits in U.S. courts.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Rhinos are not just popular recreational vehicles in Australia. Farmers, Surf Life Saving patrols (a national association of lifeguards), and Rural Fire Brigades also use them in their daily tasks.

Surf Life Saving Australia told the Daily telegraph that Yamaha assured them that “there are no safety concerns with the Rhino” and that it’s not offering the repair program in Australia because “when the user guidelines are followed, the Rhino is a safe and extremely capable side-by-side vehicle.”

The SLSA also told the Daily Telegraph that it implements driver training programs developed specifically for the Rhino. However, Yamaha told the association that “typical use” of the vehicles in the U.S. differed significantly from the SLSA’s use, and that “safety issues are not replicated here.”

So, in other words, Americans are irresponsible (if not reckless) Rhino drivers, the CPSC’s concerns are unfounded, and there’s nothing whatsoever wrong with the Rhino’s design, even though more people are killed or maimed while using them than any other UTV?

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Yamaha Australia offers no Rhino safety recall

Both lawsuits allege that Yamaha Rhinos have fundamental design flaws such as a high center of gravity, narrow track width, and narrow wheels, which make the vehicles highly unstable. The problematic design, combined with a lack of safety features that would help contain passengers and their limbs inside the vehicle, make riding in a Rhino exceptionally dangerous.

Yamaha warns consumers that Rhinos are susceptible to roll over if driven aggressively and on uneven ground. Most lawsuits, however, are filed by victims and their families who allege that the vehicles turned over on flat ground and at a low speed. Yamaha also advised drivers to keep their limbs inside the vehicle in the event of a rollover, yet Rhinos lack the necessary features to make doing so possible.

Both of the West Virginia complaints assert that injuries caused by the Rhino accidents led to medical expenses and lost wages in addition to permanent physical impairment, pain, mental anguish, and a loss in quality of life.

The Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) responded to all of the complaints against Rhino by launching an investigation last year. The agency found that the vehicles to be unreasonably dangerous and urged consumers to avoid driving their Rhinos until the appropriate safety upgrades were made by a local dealer.

The CPSC and Yamaha jointly announced the “voluntary repair program,” effectively a recall, on March 31. Safety critics applaud Yamaha’s willingness to add safety features to all vehicles sold since 2003, but say that the company still needs to address the Rhino’s fundamental safety flaws.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Rhino’s fundamental design flaws form basis of more lawsuits

The dealer told the couple that it would call them back when it had time to perform the safety repairs. Yamaha designed the new safety enhancements to prevent and minimize injury during a rollover. Rhinos are notoriously narrow and unstable vehicles, and every year people become maimed or killed when their Rhinos roll over because there is little, if anything, to prevent one’s head, arms, and legs from protruding during a rollover.

Which is just what happened to the West Virginia couple while they were waiting for a call from their Rhino dealership. In October 2007, the male was driving the Rhino. When the vehicle started to topple, the driver reacted by sticking his leg out to prevent a full-scale rollover. Although his reaction was a natural one, it did not prevent the Rhino from rolling over and crushing the driver’s leg. He now suffers from severe and permanent injuries.

Last month Yamaha and the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a “voluntary repair program” which effectively recalled all Rhino 450, 660, and 700 models for safety upgrades. Yamaha Motor Corp. agreed to install passenger doors, hand grips, and rear wheel spacers on Rhinos already sold. Additionally, the manufacturer plans to remove the rear anti-sway bar on the vehicles, which will give them more stability.

Yamaha headquarters also told its dealerships to discontinue Rhino sales until all safety upgrades were made. While so many repairs are being performed on showroom Rhinos for sale, many dealerships have little time to perform recall repairs.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › West Virginia couple sues Yamaha dealership

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced just last week that owners of Yamaha Rhino 450, 660, and 700 models could take the vehicles to their dealership for free safety repairs and upgrades. Although Yamaha clearly denies on its website that this is not a recall but a “voluntary repair program,” the CPSC believes the vehicles are a substantial risk and advises the public to avoid operating Rhinos until the proper improvements have been made. Yamaha has also told its dealers to refrain from selling Rhinos until the repairs have been made.

Yamaha Rhinos have been under investigation by the CPSC for months. The commission analyzed more than 50 Rhino accidents that involved 46 driver and passenger deaths. Two-thirds of the accidents resulted in a rollover.

Yamaha’s complimentary “repair campaign” addresses some of the issues that make the Rhino so unstable. It will modify the rear wheels with spacers, giving the vehicle a wider track. It will also remove the rear anti-sway bar, which Yamaha expects will reduce the chance of a rollover and improve the vehicle’s stability and handling.

Because hundreds more people have been seriously maimed in Rhino rollovers, Yamaha is also installing half doors and handholds. Those improvements are intended to reduce the number of people who suffer from crushed or amputated arms and legs. Additionally, Yamaha is offering owners free helmets when they update their Rhinos.

Despite the improvements, critics of the vehicle say that they still don’t adequately address the vehicles’ design flaws. Maneuvers that can be performed safely on other ATVs are still unreasonably dangerous when done on a Rhino.

The Canadian lawsuit was filed in Ontario Superior Court of Justice on Dec. 12, 2008 and served to Yamaha last week.

Source: Bloomberg.com

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Rhino lawsuit moves forward as Yamaha launches repair campaign

The woman filed her lawsuit in January in U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas, Marshall Division. According to a report in the Southeast Texas Record, her suit, like the other suits filed against Yamaha throughout the county, alleges that the “Rhino is excessively prone to tip over even at low speeds, on flat or slight grade terrain, and while conducting safe turns.”

The suit suggests that Yamaha manufactures the Rhino knowing that the ATV’s instability and lack of safety features makes it a dangerous ride for passengers. She argues that the ATV not only has a narrow track width and high center of gravity, but that its heavy, unpadded roll cage can harm passengers rather than them during a rollover incident.

The Southeast Texas Record points out that Yamaha sent letters to Yamaha owners in 2007 which instructed them to keep their arms and legs inside the vehicle in the event of a rollover. What Yamaha doesn’t explain in the letter is how passengers and their children can recall these words of advice in the middle of a terrifying rollover. Nor does it describe how passengers can defy the laws of physics during an accident, preventing limbs from exiting the ATV as it tips or tumbles.

The suit seeks damages for medical expenses, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, and pain and mental anguish. It also seeks punitive damages of an unspecified amount, alleging that Yamaha acted “in a malicious, wanton, willful, fraudulent and reckless manner evincing such an entire want of care as to raise the presumption of a conscious indifference to the consequences.”

More than 100,000 Rhinos have been sold since Yamaha started selling them in 2003.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Texas woman sues Yamaha for daughter injured in Rhino rollover

Rachel A. Jollimore was in the passenger seat of the vehicle when the driver swerved to avoid hitting a tree, causing the Rhino to roll onto its side. Jollimore was pinned underneath the UTV. She sustained a fractured skull and broken hand in the accident, which occurred in a field in Silver Springs, Florida.

Jollimore told Ocala.com that she has been considerably impaired since the July 2007 accident. “I have to watch what I do. I can’t pick anything up heavy. I can bend, but I have a limited ability. I can’t sleep on my stomach,” she told Ocala.com

In addition to suing Yamaha, Jollimore has filed suit against a manufacturing division of Yamaha and the Ocala dealer that sold the Rhino. Her suit alleges the Rhino possesses a number of design flaws that make it unsafe, including high center of gravity, narrow track width, narrow wheels and tires, and side-by-side seating. all of which contribute to the vehicle’s propensity to roll over in certain conditions.

The suit is one of the latest in a growing number of lawsuits against Yamaha throughout the country. About 200 lawsuits involving the Rhino UTV have been filed to date in both state and federal courts.

The Rhino debuted in the U.S. in 2003. Since then, more than 100,000 of the UTVs have been sold nationwide.

Jollimore has accrued more than $100,000 in medical expenses related to the accident. She seeks damages for herself and for her family, according to Ocala.com.

Yamaha continues to stand behind the Rhino and its design, claiming that the vehicle is safe when it is used responsibly.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Florida woman injured in Rhino wreck sues

The Mitchells’ daughter was a passenger in the Rhino ATV when it rolled over onto the passenger side. The June 2005 accident occurred while the ATV was being driven soundly, leading the Mitchells to allege that the Yamaha Rhino is dangerously unstable and defective. Like many people throughout the country, the Mitchells suggest the accident would not have occurred if Yamaha had set higher standards for Rhino safety.

While Yamaha stands by the safety of its Rhino, critics claim that the ATV is exceptionally dangerous because of its high center of gravity, narrow track width, narrow wheels and tires, and side-by-side seating.

The Mitchells’ daughter suffered severe injuries to her knee, arm, foot, and ankle in the rollover. She required emergency surgery and surgeons ultimately had to amputate four of the toes on her right foot.

“No more children or adults should suffer serious injuries for simply riding in the Rhino,” said Teresa Mitchell in report from the Wall Street Journal’s MarketWatch.

“In a split second, these dangerous vehicles can change a life forever,” she said.

The Mitchells believe that their lawsuit against Yamaha will help prompt Yamaha “to acknowledge its legal responsibility to injured riders and make the Rhino a safe vehicle.”

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Parents of Tenn. girl injured in Rhino rollover sue Yamaha

According to the paper, the suit alleges the ATV was “in a defective condition, unreasonably dangerous” and “not fit for its intended use and reasonably foreseeable purposes.” Causes of actions filed against the defendants include strict liability, negligence, and breach of warranty.

The report went on to say that though the lawsuit does not detail the Rhino’s alleged defects, recent lawsuits against Yamaha’s Rhino allege that the ATV’s center of gravity is too high, it is too top heavy and the tires too small. Further, the lawsuits state that the Rhino has a high rollover risk even while riding on flat surfaces while at low speeds.

In 2008, Yamaha upgraded the Rhino ATV to add doors and handholds, responding to concerns that drivers and passengers were extending arms and legs outside the vehicle in the event of a rollover, attempting to stabilize the vehicle. It also added a safety sticker on the dashboard warning Rhino operators and passengers not to do this.

A letter was sent to owners of earlier Rhino models advising them that doors and handholds would be installed at no charge to them. However, concerns exist that people who purchased earlier model Rhinos from individuals rather than dealers might not be aware of the safety hazards and might not know about the recommended door and handhold installation.

SOURCE: Yamaha Rhino Rollover › Unreasonably Dangerous