Ford Loses $31 Million in Ford Rollover Verdict

Ford Loses $31 Million in Ford Rollover Verdict

Ford Motor Co., the second-largest U.S. automaker, must pay $31 million to a South Carolina teenager who suffered brain injuries while in a Bronco II rollover accident in 2001. The verdict is the largest jury award in 2006 against an automaker.

The 17-year-old was a rear-seat passenger in a 1987 Bronco II when it flipped over on a country road in southwestern South Carolina. Lawyers argued that the Bronco II has a high center of gravity which causes rollovers.

On October 26, the Hampton, South Carolina, state court jury awarded $16 million in actual damages and $15 million in punitive damages. Ford plans to appeal.

The accident left the victim, then 12, with limited memory and diminished intellectual abilities. (Source)