Economic Injury Product Defect

On September 22, 2023, Lieff Cabraser and co-counsel filed an automotive defect class action lawsuit in federal district court in Illinois against Ford Motor Company alleging breach of warranty and violation of state and federal consumer fraud laws, relating to backup camera failures in 2020–2023 Ford Explorers equipped with the Rear View 360-Degree Camera.

The Complaint alleges that the Rear View 360-Degree Camera in the Class Vehicles intermittently fails, displaying a completely or partially blank screen in place of the display. The issue is documented in a long series of National Highway Traffic Safety complaints, four manufacturer recalls, and even a manufacturer stop-sale order. None of recall repairs issued by Ford offers a permanent fix for the problem. As a result, Ford Explorer owners are left with vehicles that lack a working backup camera, a safety feature that has been required in all new vehicles by law since 2018. Ford itself has reported that the defect has caused at least 17 accidents.