Many Polaris UTV drivers and passengers have suffered injury when their vehicle’s roll cage, also called a rollover protection system (ROPS), failed to protect them during an inevitable rollover accident. We have investigated and litigated numerous Polaris crash cases where the ROPS failed to protect the occupants by limiting the already narrow passenger spaces. These accidents have resulted in substantial injuries, leaving many occupants suffering from quadriplegia.

Polaris claims their vehicles’ ROPS meet an early 1970s OSHA standard for tractors utilized by farm workers. However, Polaris UTVs are much faster than tractors from the 1970s and require updated testing protocols.

Automobiles are certified via FMVSS 21, a static test that uses three times the vehicle’s gross weight. Per FMVSS 216, a 2023 Kia Soul with 147 horsepower (less than many Polaris RZRs) uses a testing weight of over 12,000 pounds. In comparison, Polaris RZRs never use above a 4,000-pound testing weight.

Polaris refused to test any of their UTVs correctly under the OSHA standard. They used the gross vehicle weight rather than the higher horsepower standard.

A federal judge agreed that companies must test their UTVs using the higher horsepower ratio standard, as opposed to the limited base weight of the vehicles. CLICK HERE to read a copy of Judge Mendez’s ruling in the Spencer case.