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Consumers Fight for Recall from Ford
November 16, 2006
A key component in thousands of Ford Foci has failed repeatedly in hundreds of Bay Area owners' cars, but Ford refuses to issue a recall. An attorney has filed a lawsuit against Ford on behalf of all Ford Focus owners in California.
Some think Ford has known about the problem, but covered it up for years. The enormous number of Ford Foci out there may have something to do with Ford's reluctance to issue a recall.
The issue is with the ford Focus' ignition lock. It's defective and it fails often. "It can cost up to $500 each time it fails, and they have a tendency to fail more than once, said Jeffrey Fazio, the attorney who is suing Ford. "Ford knows that, and has no intention of paying for it. Instead, it foists it onto the consumer," he added. "It's inexcusable."
"It came on all of a sudden. You never know when it'll happen," said Sharon Starr, San Francisco native. Hundreds of other Ford Focus owners know exactly what she's talking about.
"This is the number one unresolved problem in the Ford Focus," said Clarence Ditlow, head of the Center for Auto Safety in Washington DC. Ditlow says Ford issued a TSB - a Technical Service Bulletin. These are issued to inform dealership service departments about the problem, but do nothing to rectify it for out-of-warranty car owners.
Customers who come in with an ignition lock failure while their cars are still under warranty usually get the repair for free, though dealers are not required to perform the service free of charge. But those whose basic three-year/36,000 mile warranty has expired are out of luck.
According to Fazio, the piece doesn't usually fail until after the warranty has run out, and the "ignition locks Ford sells as replacements are just as defective."
"If someone was following me and I needed to start the car, I'd consider that a safety issue," said one Focus owner, Sherri Patrick, in response to Ford's claim that a recall is not warranted because it is not a safety issue. "You know, if my kids would get stuck someplace, that's a safety issue to me and they should do something about it."
Fazio seeks reimbursement for Focus owners who have had to pay to have their faulty ignition locks replaced with new faulty ignition locks. He also seeks punitive damages.
If you or a loved one has been seriously injured or killed as a result of an auto defect or poor crashworthiness, you may be eligible to recover compensation for your pain, suffering, and other losses. Please contact us today for a free consultation with an experienced and effective attorney.
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