A jury in Georgia has ordered Ford Motor Company to pay $2.5 billion in punitive damages in a case related to the deaths of Herman and Debra Mills. This ruling follows a previous decision that awarded the Mills family $30.5 million in compensation after the couple died in a rollover accident involving their 2015 Ford F-250 Super Duty truck.
The accident happened in August 2022 in Decatur County, Georgia, when Debra Mills, 64, lost control of the truck. It hit a culvert, flipped over, and landed on its roof. Debra died at the scene, while Herman, 74, passed away nine days later in a Florida hospital.
The lawsuit, filed in May 2023, claimed Ford knew that the roofs of F-250 Super Duty trucks built between 1999 and 2016 had significant weaknesses. The family contended that the weak roof design directly led to the couple’s deaths. Evidence showed that over 5 million of these trucks had roofs below safe standards. The lawsuit pointed out that the strength-to-weight ratio of these trucks was only 1.1, much lower than the safe standard of 4.0 set by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
“Ford has known for 26 years that people were getting killed and hurt by these weak roofs. Ford has constantly refused to admit the danger or warn of the risk.” — James “Jim” Butler Jr., lead counsel for the Mills family.
The jury’s decision to award $2.5 billion in punitive damages suggests they found Ford’s actions to be extremely reckless. James “Jim” Butler Jr., the lawyer for the Mills family, stated that Ford had known for 26 years that people were being injured or killed because of these weak roofs but had not addressed the issue.
Ford, on the other hand, claims that the roofs are not defective. A company spokesperson stated that the verdict was excessive and not backed by evidence, and they plan to appeal. This situation is similar to a case in 2022 where a $1.7 billion judgment against Ford was overturned on appeal, leading to a new trial. That case involved 79 similar incidents with roof collapses from around 5.2 million trucks made between 1999 and 2016.
The jury’s large punitive damages award highlights how seriously they viewed the evidence and Ford’s responsibility in this case. The outcome of the appeal is still pending, but this verdict poses a significant legal and financial challenge for Ford. This case raises ongoing concerns about vehicle roof safety and how manufacturers respond to safety issues.
Source: Butler Prather
Published: Feb 20, 2025 03:19 pm