The family of Las Vegas anchorwoman Polly Gonzalez, who was killed in a fatal Ford Explorer rollover in California in 2005, has filed a product liability lawsuit against Ford Motor Co. alleging that the sport utility vehicle’s roof was not strong enough to withstand the crash and the seatbelt failed to protect her as well. The lawsuit states that the Explorer’s roof was “buckled and bowed” after the rollover and the seatbelt was found partially extended. Gonzalez, who sustained head injuries, died of blunt force trauma. Our source for this blog was this news article in the Las Vegas Review Journal.

Apparently, 43-year-old Gonzalez’s two young daughters, who were also in the 2000 Ford Explorer, were injured but survived the horrific crash. The family was traveling on SR-127 to Las Vegas at the time and the accident occurred in Death Valley. This lawsuit was brought by Gonzalez’s ex-husband, Allan Mota, and her two daughters – Sabrina and Gabriella Mota.

In my opinion, this lawsuit rightly claims that Ford Explorers are affected by the problem of weak roofs. Independent studies that our firm conducted have consistently shown that the Ford Explorer (especially the model year in question) is one of the most unstable SUVs in the market, prone to rollovers on our highways especially when a driver is trying to take evasive action.

Several studies have shown that the roof strength of this SUV is one of the worst. The roof collapses on front seat occupants during such rollover accidents. An Explorer’s occupants typically suffer severe head, neck and spinal cord injuries during rollover crashes. The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety (IIHS) in a recent report revealed that the injury risks in SUV rollover crashes could drop between 39 to 57 percent if every SUV had a roof as strong as the best the Institute had tested.

This is also certainly not the first lawsuit against Ford alleging inadequate roof strength. A jury in Texas awarded the families of two people killed in a rollover crash – Paul Alaniz and Laura Benavides — $225 million during a 2002 trial. In that trial, the families claimed the roof of a 2000 model Ford F-Series Supercab tore open during a crash, ejecting and killing both victims. For decades, Ford and other large auto makers have fought hard to delay a federal safety standard for roof strength that would require them to make these roofs stronger and safer.

I hope Gonzalez’s two daughters receive the compensation they rightfully deserve in this case. No amount of money will bring their mother back. On the other hand, Ford could’ve strengthened that SUV’s roof for only about $300 more. The compensation from this lawsuit will hopefully help the family move on with their lives and provide some sort of financial security for the young girls’ future.