Rollovers account for only 12 per cent of single-vehicle accidents -- but they result in more than 37 per cent of the fatalities and nearly a quarter of the injuries. The numbers have safety experts in Canada and the U.S. calling for tougher standards when it comes to roof strength.

Patrick Parker spends a good part of his day watching television, his activities severely limited since becoming a quadriplegic.

Driving to work seven years ago, Parker steered to avoid a deer. His truck rolled over. The roof flattened. And although parker was wearing a seatbelt, his spinal cord was crushed, leaving him paralyzed.

I don't think people consider roof strength as one of their priorities when they buy a car," suggests Patrick.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, mandates vehicles undergo this roof strength test. The current NHTSA standard from1973 requires a roof to be strong enough to withstand one and a half times a vehicles weight. Canada's standard is identical. But the Consumers' Union--the publisher of Consumer Reports says the standard should be raised.

"NHTSA proposes raising the standard to two-and-a-half times the vehicles weight. We think that may be too weak," advises Jon Linkov, the managing editor of autos at Consumer Reports. He says government testing also needs to be more rigorous.

"We think NHTSA needs to develop a dynamic rollover test, which would take into account safety features such as curtain airbags, seat belts, and other rollover protection systems.

Consumer Reports says when shopping for a vehicle, make sure it has Electronic Stability Control, demonstrated in this test. When electronic stability control is turned off, as in this run-through, a vehicle has a greater risk of rolling over.

As for Patrick Parker, raising rollover standards can't happen soon enough. "If we had had tougher standards for roof strength, I don't think that I would be sitting in this wheelchair right now,"

Here in Canada the federal government is proposing to increase the standard to match the tougher American one whenever the Americans actually get around to changing it. It's been delayed three times since 2005. About two thirds of new vehicles currently meet the higher standard -- and it would cost just $12 per vehicle in strengthen the roofs of those that don't.

A small price to pay to save a life.