Stimpson v. Ford Motor Co.
988 So. 2d 1119 (Fla. 5th DCA 2008)
A woman was seriously injured when her van unexpectedly accelerated and struck a pole. She and her husband sued Ford Motor Company, alleging that a defect in the van caused the acceleration. The trial court ruled that their claims were barred by Florida's products liability statute of repose, § 95.031(2), Fla. Stat. (2003). The appeals court found that if the plaintiffs could prove that Ford had knowledge of the defect that caused the sudden acceleration and actively concealed that defect, the time period of such concealment would not count toward the twelve-year statutory period, § 95.031(2)(d). The trial court entered a summary judgment in favor of Ford despite plaintiffs’ presentation of evidence which, if believed by a jury, could establish or at least infer active concealment of the defect; therefore, the summary judgement was reversed by the appellate court.