– A Ford F-650 truck crash is the subject of a $1 million lawsuit filed by the driver of a 26-foot U-Haul truck.
In August 2023, plaintiff Michael Garrison Jr. rented. a 26-foot moving van at a U-Haul store in Houston, Texas.
Mr. Garrison was driving the 2022 Ford F-650 on Highway 59 in a rural area of Shelby County, Texas in August 2023 at approximately 11:30 PM. Mr. Garrison’s girlfriend, Sarah Bentle, was driving a separate vehicle directly behind the U-Haul truck.
The lawsuit alleges that the Ford truck suddenly suffered “a catastrophic mechanical failure consistent with the defect identified in Ford’s Safety Recall 22V-013.” The recall took place in January 2022 for F-series trucks equipped with 6.7 liter diesel engines.
“The engine compartment began emitting heavy smoke, which quickly erupted into a raging fire originating from the fuel system under the hood – exactly the type of failure Ford had warned could occur due to the defective secondary fuel filter cap.”
According to the plaintiff, the fire and system failures caused the Ford F-650 to veer violently across the highway. Mr. Garrison’s girlfriend witnessed the incident that forced her to turn her Cadillac Escalade off the road to avoid the burning U-Haul truck. The truck overturned on its passenger side and came to rest on fire.
The prosecutor says he was trapped in the burning 2022 Ford F-650 and was only rescued because a “brave passing motorist witnessed the inferno, stopped and used a fire extinguisher to put out the flames, allowing Mr. Garrison to escape from the taxi.”
According to the lawsuit, the Texas Peace Officer Crash Report confirms that the U-Haul “caught fire under the hood,” lost control, struck a light pole and traffic signs and overturned before coming to a stop.
The plaintiff alleges that the fuel systems of Ford’s 6.7-liter Power Stroke diesel engine have experienced multiple problems in the past, including as noted in the 2022 recall.
The lawsuit references the January 2022 recall of Ford F-650 trucks several times due to issues related to “a small opening may be present in the top center of the secondary fuel filter cap under the hood” that “may open into a pinhole… allowing fuel to leak.”
The plaintiff also blames defendant U-Haul for failing to repair the 2022 Ford F-650 before renting the truck.
But the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the 2022 Ford F-650 was not included in the previous recall. That recall only affected 2021 F-Series trucks, not the 2022 model years.
The Ford F-650 U-Haul lawsuit was filed in the 334th Judicial District Court of Harris County, Texas: Michael Garrison, Jr. against U-Haul Holding Company and Ford Motor Company.
The plaintiff is represented by Woodlands Law Firm and RMS Law Firm.
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