As reported by Law360, on April 12, 2022, U.S. District Judge Gershwin A. Drain of the Eastern District of Michigan ruled in favor of plaintiffs in refusing Ford’s attempt to dismiss the litigation filed on behalf of hundreds of Ford F-150 pickup truck owners who have experienced sudden and dangerous brake failures in their vehicles.
In his order, Judge Drain highlighted evidence that Ford was aware of the alleged defect earlier than it contends, and that Ford knew a 2016 “fix” did not resolve the brake failure issue. Judge Drain found that Ford’s bid for summary judgment ignored its own engineer’s testimony admitting that the 2016 recall did not result in a permanent solution, and that the automaker failed to remedy the actual defect until years later, in 2019.
The putative class action lawsuit was filed by Lieff Cabraser and co-counsel after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration received more than 200 complaints from Ford F-150 drivers who said the trucks’ brakes suddenly failed without warning during normal driving.
Drivers allege the brake pedals suddenly push all the way to the floor without engaging the braking system, and many have described the problem as leading to a complete and total brake failure that occurred while the vehicles were in motion. Drivers also noted that the issue can occur repeatedly, and the complaints include F-150 truck brakes that can suffer total failure after as few as 26,000 miles on the road. NHTSA received complaints from F-150 owners and drivers in 38 U.S. states.
Learn more about the Ford F-150 Pickup Truck Brake Failure litigation.
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