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Sometimes going to court can be one long, drawn-out process. Ford has decided to prolong a haunting issue it has faced for years to get around paying $1.7 billion in punitive damages. Allegedly, Ford Super Duty models don’t have the roof strength to hold up during rollover crashes. 

Ford Super Duty models may lack roof strength, but Ford disagrees

In the Fall of 2022, the court decided that Ford must pay $1.7 billion in punitive damages due to the allegations that the Ford Super Duty models from 1999-2016 weren’t strong enough to protect drivers and passengers during rollover crashes. 

The decision stemmed from a wrongful death lawsuit filed in 2015 and additional lawsuits were filed in the following years. 

Ford doesn’t want to pay up and continues to battle in court. Ford asked for a new trial, claiming that the judge at the time prevented it from providing evidence that other factors could have contributed to the deaths involved. 

But the request was rejected and another lawsuit popped up in February 2024 following an appeal. So, the fate of the first Ford Super Duty crushing lawsuit will be determined by a Georgia appeals court. Ford doesn’t find this to be peachy. 

The State of Appeals Court in the State of Georgia will decide if Ford must pay $1.7 billion to the plaintiffs in the case. 

The 2016 Ford Super Duty towing a boat
2016 Ford Super Duty | Ford

The plaintiffs are the children of the two people killed in the rollover accident that occurred after a tire blew out. However, Pep Boys installed the wrong tire on that truck. As a result, it flipped three times. 

But there are 80 other similar rollover accidents that led to multiple deaths as Ford argues that the roofs met all of the government-required safety standards at the time. The standards were updated in 2012, but Ford wasn’t required to adhere to them until 2017. 

Ford says that there is no proof that it willfully inflicted harm on the unsuspecting public and there is a vast disparity between punitive and compensatory damages. The $1.7 billion is allegedly infected by bias. 

Stay tuned as more updates about this Ford Super Duty lawsuit are on the way. 

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Allison Barfield

Allison Barfield joined MotorBiscuit in 2020 and covers all things trucks, SUVs, and Jeeps. Having grown up on a farm in Rock Hill, South Carolina, she’s no stranger to the “Best in Class” truck and SUV debates; people in her hometown were always gathering to help work on vehicles together, and deliberation would naturally arise.

Allison graduated from the University of South Carolina with a degree in Media Arts. She has helped bring awareness to issues Women In Trucking face and has promoted Truckers Against Trafficking, an anti-trafficking NGO.

A fan of creatively dark literature, Allison appreciates the works of Shirley Jackson and Emily Dickenson. She lives in a mountainous area of the country and enjoys off-roading and camping. Her dog, Bruce, often joins her in testing trucks and SUVs for our site.