A rollover is the deadliest kind of crash on the road, and it is rarely just a driver's mistake. Tall, top-heavy SUVs and trucks tip over more easily, and when the roof crushes or a door flies open, the vehicle's own design may be to blame. Same-day, confidential case review. No fee unless we recover for you.
Most crashes happen between two vehicles. A rollover is different. A sport utility vehicle, pickup, or van flips onto its side or roof — sometimes after a tire blows, a driver swerves, or another car clips it. These vehicles sit high and carry their weight up top, so they tip far more easily than a low car. At highway speed, the people inside can be hurt or killed even though no one hit them head-on.
Here is what makes a rollover case stand out, and why you want a Fort Lauderdale rollover accident lawyer who knows to look for it: the crash often points to two separate wrongs, not one. There is the negligence claim — the speeding driver, the blown tire, the road hazard that started the roll. And there can be a second claim against the company that built the vehicle, if the roof crushed in, the vehicle was prone to tipping, or a door or window let someone be thrown out. That is product liability, and most people never know it is on the table.
If you or a family member survived a rollover, the order of operations matters. Get medical care now — rollover injuries are often serious and can hide for a day or two. Do not let the insurance company take the wrecked vehicle and crush it; that twisted metal is the evidence. Save every photo, and do not give a recorded statement. Then call us before the vehicle disappears — the review is free.
A rollover claim can run on two tracks at once: the ordinary rules that govern any crash, and a separate product-defect claim against the maker of a vehicle that failed to protect you. Here is what shapes your case.
Florida product-liability law
Florida law lets you hold a manufacturer responsible for an unreasonably dangerous design or defect that made your injuries worse — a roof that crushes inward, a vehicle prone to tipping, or a door, latch, or seatbelt that let an occupant be ejected. This is a claim against the company that built the vehicle, completely separate from any claim against another driver, and it often carries the larger recovery.
Fla. Stat. § 768.81 amended 2023
Under Florida's modified comparative negligence rule, if you are found more than 50% at fault, you recover nothing; at 50% or less, your recovery is reduced by your share of blame. In a single-vehicle rollover the insurer will try to pin the whole crash on the driver — which is why proving a tire, road, or vehicle defect can change everything.
Fla. Stat. § 95.11(4)(a) amended 2023
The 2023 reform (House Bill 837) cut the deadline to file most injury claims from four years to two years from the date of the crash; wrongful death is two years from the date of death. The practical clock to preserve the vehicle is far shorter than the legal one.
Fla. Stat. § 627.736
Your own $10,000 in Personal Injury Protection (PIP) pays first, no matter who was at fault — but only if you treat within 14 days. PIP rarely covers a serious rollover injury. Once your injuries cross Florida's permanent-injury threshold (Fla. Stat. § 627.737), the real recovery comes from the at-fault driver's policy or the manufacturer.
This page provides general information about Florida law and is not legal advice. Statutes and case law change; your specific case requires a consultation.
Rollovers cluster where vehicles move fast and a sudden swerve can trip a tall SUV onto its side — open highway, sharp ramps, and work zones where the lanes jump overnight. These are the Broward roads where we see them.
Forty years on these roads means we know which curves and work zones turn a single swerve into a rollover — and how a Broward jury sees them.
The first move in a rollover case is not a lawsuit. It is making sure the wrecked vehicle is not crushed or scrapped before anyone examines it — that twisted roof and those broken latches are the proof of a design claim, and once they are gone, they are gone. Robert DiStefano has practiced Florida personal injury for more than 40 years, and he is the one who reviews your crash, decides whether a product claim is in play, and brings in the right experts.
You speak with Robert directly, not a case manager. And it costs nothing up front — these injury cases are handled on contingency, no fee unless we recover for you, and the first case review is free. See related case results →
We move fast to stop the insurer from crushing or selling the wreck, so experts can examine the roof, tires, seatbelts, and latches that tell the real story.
We look past the driver: a bad tire, a road hazard, a work-zone defect, or a vehicle built to tip or crush — and the insurance behind each one.
We document catastrophic injuries, future care, and lost earnings, then press both the negligence and product claims — in settlement or at trial.
Hurt in a different kind of wreck? We also handle everyday car accident claims and crashes with big rigs on our truck accident page, which follow their own federal rules.
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