Driver lost control of his automobile and collided with a tree. At the time of the accident, the rear seat passenger in the accident vehicle was buckled into his lapbelt.
The accident vehicle was equipped with a lapbelt and shoulder harness system for the front seat passengers; but was equipped only with a lap belt without shoulder harness for the rear seat passengers. The lapbelt which the rear seat passenger was wearing at the time of the collision crushed his intestines and caused serious damage to his spinal cord resulting in paralysis. The crush injury to his intestines required a small bowel resection with hemicolectomy and colostomy.