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Defective
Products > Seatbelt Failure
Seatbelt laws have been passed though out the United States
including Oklahoma requiring passengers to wear safety belts
(seat belts) while driving a motor vehicle. Because of this,
it is the seat belt manufacturers’ responsibility to
thoroughly test seatbelts in crashworthiness testing to ensure
the safety of passengers to offer the highest level of occupant
safety in auto accidents, SUV rollovers as well as single
car crashes.
From time to time, defective seatbelts do not restrain the
vehicle occupant in a car wreck, causing personal injury and
in some cases a wrongful death. As mentioned in the product
liability section of our Oklahoma personal injury website,
the manufacturer is responsible for this defective seatbelt.
If you or a loved one has been injured due to the negligence
of a manufacturer rolling out a defective seatbelt, contact
the personal injury lawyers at Atkins
and Markoff to discuss your defective seatbelt claim. Please
call us toll free or fill out our contact
form. We are here to help.
Seatbelt Failure
News:
Ford to Pay $6.5 Million In Seat-Belt Failure Suit
April 10, 2002
The Oklahoma Supreme Court has ruled that Ford Motor Co.
must pay more than $6.5 million to the family of a young man
who suffered permanent brain damage because of an allegedly
defective seat belt in his Ford Ranger pickup truck.
Ricky Johnson, then 19, was injured in June 1997 when his
truck ran off the road and plowed into a creek bottom near
Tecumseh, OK. Johnson's parents charged that his injuries
were caused by the failure of his seat belt.
The suit alleges that a sharp edge on the seat belt latch
plate cut into the seat belt, causing it fail and permitted
Johnson's head to slam into the vehicle during the crash.
Ford charged that Johnson's injury were caused by the violent
movement of the vehicle during the crash, not by the seat
belt failure.
"This is an unfortunate ruling, not based on facts,"
Ford said in a prepared statement. "The driver fell asleep
at the wheel, left the road and eventually became airborne
for more than 70 feet. There is no evidence that he hit his
head at any time during the accident."
The suit charged that Ford built and sold an "unreasonably
dangerous vehicle" and the Oklahoma high court agreed.
In its ruling, the Oklahoma court upheld an earlier jury
verdict that awarded Johnson $5 million in compensatory and
punitive damages. With interest added to the original award,
Ford must now pay Johnson and his family more than $6.5 million,
one of his attorneys said.
Ford's damages may well exceed the $6.5 million. The company
has been struggling to recover from falling vehicle sales
brought on, at least in part, by a rash of safety-related
problems in recent years.
If you or a loved one have been injured due to seatbelt
failure, contact us to review
your seatbelt injury claim. We are experienced Oklahoma
personal injury lawyers and we are ready to help you.
Please call us toll fee or fill out our contact
form.
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