Ford Agrees to Settle Aerostar Seat Belt Case

Ford Motor Co. agreed to pay an undisclosed amount to settle a lawsuit by a Florida woman and her quadriplegic son who claimed the child’s injuries were caused by defective seat belts in an Aerostar van.

The case was the first to go to trial involving a claim that Ford knowingly made a restraint system inadequate for children too large for car seats and too small for standard seatbelts.

Palmella Rainford sued Ford after a driver hit her 1992 Aerostar van in 1996 after running a stop sign. Her son, Jamaal Walker, then 6, was rendered a quadriplegic when his spine strained due to a loose seatbelt, her lawyers told a Palm Beach County District Court jury in West Palm Beach, Fla.

“The family of Jamaal Walker is very pleased with the settlement reached with Ford Motor Co.,” said Tab Turner, a Little Rock, Ark., lawyer who represented the family.

Both sides declined to give details on the settlement.

Ford and other auto makers now offer special seats for children between ages 4 and 8.

Jury selection began in the case on Jan. 9.

“This was a tragic accident caused by another driver,” said Ford spokeswoman Kathleen Vokes. “No currently designed restraint system could have prevented the neck injury.”

Shares of Dearborn, Mich.-based Ford rose 53 cents to $16.17 on the New York Stock Exchange.