Ford Must Face Defective MyFord Touch Class Action Lawsuit

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Class action claims over an allegedly defective touch screen in Ford vehicles will largely be allowed to continue, following a federal judge’s order.

For the most part, U.S. District Judge Edward M. Chen denied a motion for summary judgment brought by defendant Ford Motor Co. seeking to evade class action claims that its MyFord Touch vehicle infotainment system is defective.

Judge Chen allowed claims for breach of implied warranty to continue, noting that the plaintiffs have presented sufficient evidence for a jury to find that the vehicles at issue were unmerchantable and that the defects manifested within one year. Claims for breach of express warranty will also continue, as the judge determined issues of fact exist as to whether plaintiffs met Ford’s requirement to exhaust two attempts at repair.

Two state-based class claims, one for negligence under Ohio law and the other for violation of California’s Unfair Competition law, will also be allowed to continue, as will individual plaintiffs’ claims for fraud and for violation of the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act.

Judge Chen granted Ford’s motion as to the California Class’s claim under that state’s Song-Beverly Act, noting a lack of evidence that Ford had acted as a distributor or retailer. Claims for strict liability brought by the Colorado Class failed under a rule barring tort claims for purely economic harms.

Ford also won on claims brought by the Center for Defensive Driving. Judge Chen determined the CDD is not a “consumer” capable of bringing claims under the California Consumer Legal Remedies Act.

This action is a consolidation of several Ford class action lawsuits filed as early as 2013. Plaintiffs allege the MyTouch dashboard touch screen systems offered on many Ford vehicles failed to perform as vehicle owners were led to expect.

Ford began offering the MyFord systems in 2010. The system was designed to give drivers touchscreen operation of the vehicle’s navigation and climate control systems, plus the ability to make phone calls and play music from their smartphones.

According to the plaintiffs, the MyFord touchscreens are riddled with a variety of defects. Plaintiffs claim the screens crash or freeze up while the vehicle is in motion. Some report the system fails to connect to mobile devices or that the GPS information provided is inaccurate.

Ford managed to get four class-based claims decertified in November 2016. The company successfully argued that the fraud-based claims under the laws of Ohio, Texas, California and Virginia law required a showing that Class Members relied on the allegedly false statements – a showing that can’t be made on a class-wide basis.

The plaintiff Classes cover an estimated 500,000 owners of Ford vehicles equipped with MyFord touchscreens. Trial is scheduled to begin in May of this year.

The plaintiffs and plaintiff Classes are represented by attorneys Steve W. Berman, Catherine Y.N. Gannon, Craig Spiegel and Tyler Weaver of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, Nicholas E. Chimicles and Benjamin F. Johns of Chimicles & Tikellis LLP, Roland Tellis and Mark Pifko of Baron & Budd PC, and Adam J. Levitt and John E. Tangren of DiCello Levitt & Casey LLC.

The MyFord Touch Defect Class Action Lawsuit is In re: MyFord Touch Consumer Litigation, Case No. 3:13-cv-03072, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

UPDATE: On June 1, 2018, a class action settlement has been reached between Ford and a group of consumers who allege that the car company sold vehicles with defective touch screens.

UPDATE 2: On Feb. 7, 2019, a revised $17 million proposed settlement offer is before a California federal judge that could end a Ford class action lawsuit over allegedly defective MyFord touch screens.

UPDATE 3: May 2019, the MyFord Touch class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim.