What Do I Need to Know About the Airbag Lawsuit Against Ford?

A class action lawsuit represents a legal maneuver involving a group of individuals that file a lawsuit against one party or multiple parties accused of the same act of negligence. Let’s assume a company manufactured a defective product worth $100. Every consumer that purchased the defective product qualifies to join the class action lawsuit filed against the manufacturer. If the manufacturer refuses to compensate the consumers that bought the faulty product, filing individual lawsuits would not make financial sense because the cost of litigation associated with an individual lawsuit is far greater than the $100 price tag of the defective product. Filing a civil lawsuit as a class action carries much more legal weight for the plaintiffs.

Qualifying plaintiffs receive notice of their eligibility to participate in the Ford Airbag lawsuit. After receiving the formal notification of eligibility to join the class action lawsuit, qualified consumers have to decide whether to join the Ford airbag lawsuit. If you qualify as a plaintiff for the class action lawsuit, you do not have to take any additional legal actions until the judge hearing the case issues a verdict or the class of plaintiffs reaches a favorable settlement with Ford. Since Ford has agreed to a settlement totaling more than $300 million, all you have to do is prove you owned a qualified Ford vehicle according to the timeline established by the class action lawsuit.

You do not have to pay to join the Ford class action lawsuit. The only cost you should worry about is the legal fees charged if you decide to file an individual lawsuit that seeks monetary damages. If the monetary damages you sustained because the Takata airbag deployed and debris caused you serious injuries is greater than the losses sustained by members of the class action group, you should consider filing a product liability lawsuit.

One of the highly-rated litigators at Morgan & Morgan can help you decide which legal action to take.

Class action lawsuits represent an effective legal maneuver for plaintiffs that have minor claims. If you join a class action lawsuit, you do not have to pay fees or participate in any legal proceedings. Consolidating many individual claims into one class action lawsuit improves the efficiency of the judicial system by eliminating cases from the court docket. Class action lawsuits reduce stress on every participant, as well as deliver fair and consistent compensation to every member of the class. One of the greatest advantages of joining a class action lawsuit is that you have a better chance of holding the defendant accountable for manufacturing and selling a defective product.

If you receive a notification from a court that requires you to confirm your participation in the Ford airbag lawsuit, you have received notice of an opt-in class action lawsuit. An opt-out class action lawsuit automatically includes every eligible member of a class. For the Ford airbag lawsuit, plaintiffs have to opt out of the lawsuit if they want to file an individual civil lawsuit.

Plaintiffs of the Ford airbag lawsuit receive compensation based on the conditions agreed to in a settlement or the orders issued by the judge hearing the case. Since the Ford airbag lawsuit reached a settlement, a judge had to approve the terms of the settlement before the plaintiffs received compensation. Class action compensation typically is distributed among the participants, lead plaintiffs, and the litigators that worked on the case. Because they contribute more time and effort to a class action lawsuit, the lead plaintiffs receive a larger verdict or settlement than what the participants receive.

Lawyers that handle class action lawsuits receive compensation on a contingency fee basis. This means the plaintiffs do not have to pay upfront legal fees and the costs associated with conducting investigations, Contingency fees usually run between 25 percent and 40 percent of the total financial award, depending on the complexity of the case and the value of the plaintiffs request for compensation. The judge hearing a class action lawsuit factors in the value of contingency fees when determining a verdict or approving a settlement.

Mass torts represent individual lawsuits filed against the same defendant. Although class action lawsuits deliver the same legal results for every plaintiff, individual mass torts can lead to different outcomes for the individual plaintiffs. If you suffered injuries that were caused by a defective Takata airbag installed in a qualified Ford vehicle, you should consider filing an individual lawsuit that seeks monetary damages to cover the costs associated with your injuries. However, you have to partner with an established law firm that understands the process for filing a product liability lawsuit.

The key to winning a product liability is to submit enough persuasive evidence that the judicial system should hold Ford and/or Takata legally liable for causing you harm because you bought a Ford vehicle that deployed a defective Takata airbag. Evidence comes in the form of photos that depict your injuries, the results of diagnostic tests that prove you sustained injuries, and the copies of records that demonstrate the cost of treatment, physical therapy, prescription medications, and the use of any assistive devices.

Must Link Your Injuries to a Defective Takata Airbag

Manufacturers that introduce defective products into the marketplace are legally liable for any injuries and financial losses caused by a faulty product. In the case of the Takata airbag installed in certain Ford vehicles, Ford and/or Takata might be legally obligated to cover your financial losses. Your legal counsel must demonstrate a clear link between the faulty Takata airbag installed in your qualified Ford vehicle and the injuries and damages you suffered because of the defective airbag.

Proving Liability

Your product liability attorney must prove Ford and/or Takata should assume legal liability for causing your injuries. Negligence represents the most common type of legal liability. To prove negligence, your legal counsel must show that Takata and/or Ford assume a legal duty of care, which means the companies are responsible for protecting you from harm. Second, your product liability attorney must demonstrate one or both companies breached the duty of care. Third, the faulty airbag has to be the cause of your injuries. Finally, the injuries you sustained caused damages that include financial losses.

Your legal counsel also might prove two other types of legal liability: Strict liability and breach of warranty. Strict liability means Takata and/or Ford should be held legally liable for causing your injuries and monetary damages. To prove strict liability, your lawyer demonstrates the airbag possesses one or more defects, as well as the defects caused you harm and financial losses.

The primary reason you should file a mass tort is to recover a substantial amount of financial losses that a favorable class action lawsuit verdict does not cover. Suffering injuries caused by a defective Takata airbag can produce costs that run into thousands of dollars. You have the right to recover all the costs associated with medical care. Favorable verdicts and settlements typically include money to pay for property damage. If a faulty airbag deployed and caused you harm that forced you to crash an eligible Ford vehicle, you should file a lawsuit that seeks compensation for property damage. Injuries that forced you out of work might make you eligible to recover lost wages.

For a product liability case, a judge hearing the case can award compensation in the form of punitive damages. Although not awarded to help a plaintiff pay expenses, punitive damages for a product liability case can be substantial. This is especially true if Ford and/or Takata knew about the defects of the airbag.

If you owned an eligible Ford vehicle that included a defective Takata airbag, you might qualify to join a class action for a Ford airbag lawsuit. One of the attorneys from Morgan & Morgan will determine whether you should join the Ford airbag lawsuit or file an individual lawsuit that seeks monetary damages. Sustaining one or more serious injuries should be enough to warrant the filing of an individual lawsuit.

Learn more about the Ford airbag lawsuit by scheduling a free case evaluation with one of the experienced litigators at Morgan & Morgan.