Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. plans to appeal a $5.6 million award to a Pasco County, Fla., family resulting from a 2004 RV accident.
The suit, filed in 2006, went to trial last week in New Port Richey, and the jury returned a verdict and award against Goodyear on June 25.
The suit alleged that Goodyear’s G159 tire was defective and prone to overheating and separating at high speeds. The family was enroute to a family member’s military graduation in August 2004 when a tire on the RV blew, sending the vehicle down an embankment, across an interstate on-ramp and into some trees.
The driver suffered multiple broken bones, and other passengers suffered broken facial bones and another lost both legs.
A Goodyear spokesman told local media that, "This was an unfortunate accident and our thoughts and prayers are with those injured. However, the RV owner ignored a number of safety issues with his vehicle that led to the accident, including: failing to hook-up the supplemental brakes on the vehicle he was towing, ignoring a vibration in his steering wheel for more than five minutes and getting out of the driver’s seat while the vehicle was traveling at highway speeds. Also, Goodyear tire experts determined the vehicle’s front tire had been punctured in two locations."
