Explorer Rollovers
Ford Explorer Rollover Lawsuits
The safety of the Ford SUVs became a nationwide concern in 2000. More than 200 deaths and 700 injuries in the United States were blamed on Ford Explorers rolling over after the tread separated on Firestone tires with which the Explorers had been equipped.
In 2005, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety issued a report finding that the two-door, two-wheel drive Ford Explorer made between 1999 and 2002 had the fourth highest rate of driver death of the 47 SUVs that were part of the study.
Lieff Cabraser represents families of loved ones across America who died in Ford Explorer rollover crashes. In one lawsuit involving a 2000 Ford Explorer, plaintiffs charged that:
- The Ford Explorer was defective in its handling and stability because the Explorer is top-heavy and prone to heavy oversteering by drivers, making a rollover accident likely;
- The Ford Explorer was equipped with defective door latches that are too weak to hold the doors shut in a rollover accident, causing passengers to be ejected from these vehicles;
- The Ford Explorer was not equipped with laminated safety glass which would help prevent passengers from being ejected in SUV rollovers; and
- The seat belts were defective because they did not automatically retract and tighten during an accident.
In lawsuits against Ford, injured drivers have charged that Ford has failed to take responsibility for producing a vehicle, particularly the 1991-2001 model year Explorer, that has killed hundreds of consumers. In one trial in which Lieff Cabraser served as plaintiffs’ co-counsel evidence was introduced for the purpose of showing that Ford’s pre-market testing of the Explorer showed a clear and present risk of roll over that far exceeded the benefits associated with the design.
Despite the clear warning of Ford’s own engineers, Ford management allegedly made a conscious decision to forge ahead with production of a vehicle and prepare to defend the decisions in court. The Explorer provided Ford a 40% profit per vehicle as compared to 8-10% profit for a station wagon.
Ford Explorer Rollover Injury Lawyers | Attorneys
Lieff Cabraser represents persons who have been injured or killed as a result of Ford Explorer and other SUV accidents, whether due to a rollover accident, crushed roof, door latch problem, lack of laminated windows, seatbelt failure, or a combination of these or other factors.
Please contact an auto injury attorney at Lieff Cabraser for a free, no-obligation review of your case. Alternatively, you may call Lieff Cabraser toll-free at 1-800-541-7358 and ask to speak to partner Fabrice Vincent.
