New York Personal Injury News & NYC Legal Current Events

$131 Million Defective Seatbelt Lawsuit Won For Family Of NY Mets Play

Ford Motor Company has settled a $131 million defective car part lawsuit with the family of a young man that was killed in a car accident in 2002. During the wrongful death lawsuit, the family argued that their son’s seatbelt was defective and that he would have survived the SUV accident if his safety belt didn’t malfunction during the rollover.

In 2002, a New York Mets minor league outfielder, 22-year-old Brian Cole, was driving a Ford Explorer SUV with his cousin when he lost control of his vehicle and rolled the car. Cole was killed in the SUV rollover accident, while his cousin was seriously injured. Evidence on Cole’s body suggested he was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash, but that the belt failed to keep him strapped in. The accident occurred during the Met’s spring training, and the investigation found that Cole was traveling at approximately 80 miles per hour.

This is certainly not the first lawsuit that Ford has settled concerning defective seat belts, personal injury, and wrongful death in New York. In fact, for has also lost personal injury cases related to the rollover danger of their popular Explorer model. In this case, Ford settled with Cole’s family for $131 million in damages, including loss of future wages, while Cole’s cousin received $1.5 million. The settlement came after a jury found Ford responsible but before the judge decided on punitive damages.

The New York Mets said that they had planned to move Cole to the major leagues in the weeks before his fatal car accident. 

Read More About $131 Million Defective Seatbelt Lawsuit Won For Family Of NY Mets Play...

back to top