There's a debate hotting up in the USA about whether the Ford Explorer is
inherently unsafe.
Earlier this week a jury in the desert town of Barstow, California reached a
verdict that Agop and Catherine Gozukara's Explorer was defective by design.
Ford Motor Company wasn't held responsible however - damages are to be paid by
the dealership, the state of California and a road construction company.
Now another lawsuit has been served by the family of Tiffany Tedford, a five
year old girl whose parents and grandparents were recently killed in a crash.
She was the sole survivor.
There are over 300 deaths around the world that are claimed to be
attributable to the design of the Explorer and it's propensity to roll over. The
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is currently conducting an
investigation into the vehicle as is the Florida Attorney General. The Attorney
General's investigation is being conducted in concert with other states as part
of a 50 state special investigation into the Explorer.
Ford themselves not surprisingly are very defensive about the vehicle and
issued the following statement:
Our condolences go out to anyone who is involved
in an accident. Based on our understanding, this accident was set in motion
when the driver struck another vehicle. Of the five passengers in the
vehicle, Tiffany Tedford, the sole survivor, was the only one wearing her
seatbelt. This is another tragic reminder that seat belts can help save
lives only when they are worn.
There are four million Ford Explorers on the road
traveling more than 44 billion miles a year. No matter what personal injury
lawyers claim to generate media attention, U. S. Department of
Transportation (DOT) safety data shows that the Explorer has a better safety
record than passenger cars and other SUVs.
According to the DOT, in all accident types the
Explorer is 27 percent safer than passenger cars, and is 19 percent safer
than other comparable SUVs in a rollover accident.
As the links below will illustrate, there are many tragic
stories associated with crashing these cars. How fair it is to attribute the
blame to the design of the car remains unclear. 4x4's are going to be more
unstable that cars - shouldn't we just accept that...?
