Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) Ordered to Pay $131 Million Settlement

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) was ordered by a Mississippi Jury on Thursday to pay $131 million to the family of a man that died while driving a Ford Explorer in a trial centered around a 2001 accident involving Brian Cole.

The family’s attorney, Tab Turner, said that Ford reached a settlement with the family but declined to disclose the amount. Turner said the damages were higher than in other rollover cases because of Cole’s profession, who at the time was a professional baseball player.

Ford spokeswoman Marcey Evans told the press that Cole had been driving more than 80 miles per hour when his vehicle went off road and was not wearing a safety belt. She said that the company would have won the case if the judge had opted not to exclude certain pieces of evidence. “This was a tragic accident and our sympathy goes out to the Cole family for their loss, but it was unfair of them to blame Ford,” Evans said. Ford did not disclose the settlement either.

Ford cut a long-running partnership with Firestone in 2001 after blaming the tire marker for wheel blowouts and rollover accidents that caused a number of injuries and deaths to drivers of its Explorer sport utility vehicle.

Ford had earmarked $2.6 billion early last decade to replace 19.5 million Firestone tires.

Ford Motor Company (Ford) is a producer of cars and trucks. Ford and its subsidiaries also engage in other businesses, including financing vehicles. It operates under two segments: Automotive and Financial Services. The Automotive segment includes the operations of Ford North America, Ford South America, Ford Europe, Ford Asia Pacific Africa and Volvo. The Financial services include the operations of Ford Motor Credit Company and Other Financial Services. In August 2010, the Company completed the sale of its Swedish Volvo Car unit and related assets to China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co.

Shares of Ford Motor Co. (NYSE: F) traded up 3.07% hitting $12.07 during mid-day trading on Friday.

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