Product Liability Law Blog

A jury has awarded the family of Aaliyah George an $8 million seatback collapse verdict for catastrophic injuries she sustained during a Missouri car accident in 2007. George was 2-years-old at the time. Johnson Controls, Inc., the company that designed and manufactured the car seat that malfunctioned, is the defendant of this Missouri auto products liability lawsuit.

Aaliyah was injured on October 24, 2007 when the 1997 Dodge neon that she was riding, which her grandmother Margaret Steele was driving, was rear-ended by another vehicle. During the collision, the driver’s seat fell backward, causing Steele to fall back and her head to strike Aaliyah, who was in her child safety seat, on the head.

Because of the seatback defect, the little girl suffered a traumatic head injury, brain damage, multiple fractures, and permanent partial paralysis to her right side. Also, her thought, speech, and learning capabilities suffered significant damage. Aaliyah’s auto products liability lawyers say it is unlikely that her cognitive development will advance beyond that of an adolescent.

According to Dolan Media Newswire, a month before the civil trial the plaintiff’s attorneys dropped the negligence and punitive damages claims against the defendant. This means that Johnson Controls could not offer its primary defense that the seats had been designed according to Chrysler’s specifications. The only claim left was that of strict product liability, which does not require the defendant to have engaged in misconduct to be held liable.

Seatback Failure
Seatback malfunctions can result in serious injuries and deaths. A collapsing seatback can:

• Cause a driver—if it is his/her seat that collapses—to lose control of the vehicle.
• Result in partial or complete ejection for the seat occupant from the auto.
• Throw the seat occupant into the other vehicle occupants or against the auto's interior.
• Cause serious injury to the seat occupant and to the person sitting behind the defective seat.

Platte County jury awards $8M judgment for injured girl, Missouri Lawyers Media/Dolan Company, August 2, 2010

Mo. jury awards family $8M from Johnson Controls, Business Week/Associated Press, August 4, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Preliminary Assessment of NASS CDS Data Related to Rearward Seat Collapse and Occupant Injury, NHTSA

Seat Back Defects, Buzzle.com

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Posted In: Automotive Product Liability , Catastrophic Injuries , Injuries to Children & Minors , Kids in Cars , Seat Back Defects , Traumatic Brain Injuries

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More auto safety issues have prompted the recall of more vehicles by some of the largest manufacturers. Our auto products liability law firm wants to remind you that auto defects that cause serious injuries or wrongful death maybe grounds for a personal injury case or a wrongful death complaint against a negligent automaker.

General Motors is recalling 243,000 crossover vehicles because of a possible rear seat belt defect that can occur if the belt becomes damaged when a seat that has been folded flat is restored to an upright position. This can allow a seat belt occupant to mistakenly think that the belt is properly latched. The GM recall involves the 2009 and 2010 models of the Buick Enclave, the Chevrolet Traverse, the Saturn Outlook, and the GMC Acadia.

Also this week, Mazda Motor Corp. announced that it is recalling 215,000 Mazda 5 and Mazda 3 vehicles (2007 – 2009 models) in the US because they might suddenly lose their power steering without warning, increasing the risk of a car crash. The auto defect can happen if rust comes off a high pressure pipe and places strain on the power steering pump, resulting in a system shutdown.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it has received at least 33 complaints regarding this safety issue. Three of the complaints contend that loss of steering control caused their respective car accidents. While the vehicles use an electric boost to the hydraulic power steering system that is supposed to make turning the car easier, some drivers do not have the extra strength required to maintain control of the auto should the electric boost fail.

Last week, Honda Motor Corp. recalled 428,000 autos in the US and Canada because of an auto defect that can cause a car to roll away if it is not parked properly. This may happen if the ignition interlock lever fails. The lever is supposed to keep they key in the ignition if the vehicle has not been placed in park. Honda vehicles in the US affected by the recall are the Civic, Accord, and Element (2003 and 2004 models).

NHTSA upgraded its investigation into the possible vehicle defect after Honda received reports of 10-related car accidents. NHTSA says it had received 11 car crash reports over the same issue.

G.M. Recall for Seat Belts Affects 243,000 Crossovers, NY Times, August 17, 2010

Steering issues spur Mazda recall; GM recall targets seatbelts, Los Angeles Times, August 18, 2010

Honda to Recall 428,000 Vehicles in N. America, ABC News, August 9, 2010

Related Web Resources:
NHTSA

Auto Recalls, Justia

Continue reading "Mazda, General Motors, and Honda Recall Vehicles Over Power Steering, Seat Belt, and Ignition Issues" »

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Posted In: Auto Recalls , Automotive Product Liability , Seat Back Defects , Seat Belts

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A jury has awarded the family of Sarah Goodner a $1.8 million auto products liability verdict for her wrongful death. The 19-year-old sustained fatal injuries during a rollover car accident involving a Hyundai Tucson in July 2007.

Sarah and her sister Rebekah, then 16, were taking turns driving from San Angelo to Dallas Texas when the tragic car crash happened. At some point, Rebekah fell asleep at the wheel. Sarah, who had reclined her seat so she could rest, woke her sister up and that was when the younger girl overcorrected the sport utility vehicle, causing it to rollover three times.

While Rebekah’s seat belt kept her securely in her seat, Sarah slid out from under safety belt. She was thrown out the rear window and suffered fatal head injuries. Sarah’s family then sued Hyundai for Texas auto products liability.

Reclining Car Seat Defect
Experts say that 45 degrees is the farthest angle that a car seat can recline back before it becomes dangerous. During the auto products liability trial, evidence presented showed that the reason the seat belt failed to keep Sarah in her chair was because the seat was fully reclined. This allowed her to slide out from under her safety belt. Her family’s wrongful death lawyers accused Hyundai of failing to use available technology that would keep seats from reclining beyond the 45 degree angle and that this negligence on the part of the automaker cost Sarah her life.

On April 22, a federal jury found Hyundai responsible for Sarah’s wrongful death. They agreed with the plaintiffs that the seat was defectively designed because it was able to recline too far back. This is the first time that a jury has found that a reclining seat defect can prove fatal during a car accident.

Car's safety design defect caused teen's death, Colorado Connection, May 5, 2010

Teen's death in Big Country brings $1.8M judgment against Hyundai, Reporter News, April 30, 2010

Related Web Resource:
Hyundai

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Posted In: Automotive Product Liability , Seat Back Defects , States , Texas , Wrongful Death

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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says that car manufacturers recalled 16.4 million vehicles last year. While there were less recall campaigns overall—492 recall campaigns in 2009 compared to 684 campaigns in 2008, automakers recalled 6 million more autos last year.

Toyota led the car manufacturer list with most vehicles recalled. The car manufacturer’s reputation for passenger safety took a beating after four people were killed when its floor mat on the driver's side jammed a 2009 Lexus ES 350’s gas pedal, causing the vehicle to accelerate to over 100 mph before crashing. Following the fatal car wreck, the Toyota announced a recall involving 4.26 million vehicles—its largest recall ever—to fix acceleration problems. In total, Toyota announced 9 campaigns and recalled 4.87 million autos last year.

Among the other automakers that recalled vehicles in 2009:

• Ford Motor Co.: 8 campaigns that recalled 4.5 million vehicles.

• General Motors Co.: 16 campaigns and 2.2 million autos recalled.

• Honda Motor Co.: 4 campaigns and 454,000 motor vehicles. Honda was the only auto manufacturer to see a drop in the number of vehicles it recalled in 2009 compared to the year before. The car manufacturer recalled 797,000 autos in 2008.

• Chrysler Group LLC: 15 campaigns and 59,000 vehicles.

• Nissan Motor Co.’s Kia Unit: 8 campaigns and 1.3 million autos.

• Volkswagen AG: 8 campaigns and 100,000 recalled autos.

While recalling a vehicle to fix a particular defect is a positive step toward preventing injuries and deaths, car manufacturers should not be designing, making, and selling vehicles that have any type of vehicle defect to begin with. Auto defects are not minor glitches that can be easily fixed. There are lives at stake whenever someone gets in a car that can potentially malfunction because a specific part was defective or poorly manufactured.

Do NOT be intimidated by a giant car manufacturer when it comes to pursuing an auto products liability claim for personal injury or death. Our auto products liability lawyers represents clients who were seriously injured or lost loved ones in car accidents because of structural defects, faulty engines, a seat back defects, a poorly designed seat belts, weak vehicle roofs, defective tires, faulty airbags, or other flawed vehicle parts.

Auto recalls surge in '09, NHTSA says, Detroit News, January 12, 2010

Recalls, NHTSA

Related Web Resources:
Auto Recalls, Justia
Consumer Reports

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Posted In: 15-Passenger Vans , Air Bags , Automotive Product Liability , Floor Mats , Roof Crush , Seat Back Defects , Seat Belts , Sport Utility Vehicle Rollovers , Tires , Toyota Safety Issues , WIndows

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Ford Motor Co. and a woman who was paralyzed in a 2005 SUV accident involving a defective rear seat latch have reached a confidential auto products liability settlement. The agreement came just after a civil jury awarded Lynn Wheeler $16,444,761 in compensatory damages against Ford and as jury members were getting ready to impose punitive damages.

Wheeler sustained catastrophic spinal cord injuries during a seatback collapse when a car driven by John C. Stanley struck the 2002 Ford Explorer she was a passenger. Wheeler, who was riding in the middle of the backseat of the SUV in between two of her grandchildren, was propelled forward into the vehicle’s center console and the back of the front seat. Meantime, the back seat collapsed over her after the rear seat latch broke.

Her Georgia auto products liability lawsuit accused Ford of designing a rear seat latch that was defective, disregarding safety test results showing that the center lap seat belt wasn’t safe, and, as a cost cutting measure, waiting to install a shoulder restraint for the SUV’s middle seat. A law passed in 2002, but which didn’t go into effect until 2007, now prevents car manufacturers from making vehicles with lap-only seat belts for the rear middle seat.

Wheeler, who is now a quadriplegic, has to use a ventilator and is a confined to a wheelchair. She has three children, nine grandchildren, and has been married to her husband for over 40 years.

The civil jury also held driver John C. Stanley, who was 19 at the time of the head-on crash, liable for $1,271,640 in damages.

Seat Back Defects
Defective seat backs can prove catastrophic for passengers in the event that the seat collapses during an auto accident. Common seat back injuries include spinal cord injuries, which can occur when the rear seat collapses forward and crushes passengers while pushing them into the back of the front seats, and chest and head injuries, which are more likely to occur when the front seat collapses backwards. Children, including those seated in child safety seats, are especially at risk of sustaining fatal injuries during a car crash where a seatback collapse is involved.

Clayton jury returns $17 million verdict, MyCountryPaper, December 26, 2009

Seat failures and occupant restraints, SafetyForum

Related Web Resources:
Ford Motor Co.

NHTSA

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Posted In: Automotive Product Liability , Catastrophic Injuries , Georgia , Seat Back Defects , Spinal Cord Injuries , States

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