Bexar County Jury Awards $124.5M in Defective Car Seat Case

A child sustained a severe brain injury when a driver crashed into the back of his father's car. The impact caused the driver's seat to collapse, leading to the child's head hitting his father's head. The child suffered a fractured skull, partial paralysis, and blindness, requiring lifelong assisted living and medical care.

Case Information Updated: October 2025

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Catastrophic Injury

Rear-end

Design defects

Case Outcome

Outcome: Settlement
Amount: $124,000,000
County: Bexar County, TX
Resolved: 2016

Injury & Accident Details

Injury Type: Catastrophic Injury
Accident Type: Rear-end
Case Type: Design defects, negligence, failure to warn, malice, gross neglect

Settlement Context

This settlement of $124,000,000 is above the median of $1,000,000 for catastrophic injury cases resolved by settlement. The typical range is $52,460 to $15,025,000, based on 8 cases in our database.

Case Overview

In December 2012, a vehicle driven by the child’s father was stopped in Bexar County, Texas, behind a school bus when another driver crashed into it from behind. The impact caused the driver's seat to collapse rearward, striking the head of the seven-year-old child seated in the back. The child suffered a traumatic brain injury, including a depressed skull fracture, partial paralysis, and blindness, requiring lifelong assisted living and extensive medical care.

The plaintiffs, the child and his family, filed a lawsuit in Bexar County District Court against the driver who caused the rear-end collision, and against the car manufacturers, Audi AG and Volkswagen Group of America Inc. The suit alleged design defects and negligence against the car manufacturers, claiming the driver’s seat was defective and they knew about the defect but failed to warn consumers. The plaintiffs also claimed malice and gross neglect against the car manufacturers and negligence against the defendant driver.

The car manufacturers denied responsibility, arguing the child’s father was contributorily negligent for not securing the child in a child safety seat and for failing to mitigate damages. They also contended the plaintiffs failed to identify an adequate alternative seat design. The defendant driver argued that the car manufacturers were primarily at fault due to the alleged design defect and sought to have any liability reduced by their percentage of responsibility.

A jury on March 2, 2016, awarded the family $124.5 million. The jury found that design defects in the vehicle's driver's seat caused it to collapse and that the car manufacturers were negligent in failing to warn about the defect, attributing 55 percent of the liability to them. The defendant driver was found 25 percent responsible, and the child's father was found 20 percent responsible for not securing the child in a car seat. Under Texas law, a party found more than 50 percent responsible is liable for the entire amount of damages. No punitive damages were awarded.

Understanding This Case

This case was resolved through a settlement, avoiding the uncertainty and expense of a trial. Settlements typically resolve faster and provide guaranteed compensation.
This case was resolved in Bexar County, Texas. Local jury tendencies, judge assignments, and regional economic conditions all influence case outcomes in this jurisdiction.
Resolved in 2016, this case reflects the legal and economic conditions of that period, including medical costs, insurance practices, and jury award trends at the time.

Verdictly^TM Score

/100

Questionable

This outcome differs from typical similar cases

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Motor Vehicle Negligence

On May 26, 2004, a plaintiff was a passenger in an automobile that was rear-ended near the intersection of Bedford Avenue and De Kalb Avenue in Brooklyn. The plaintiff's vehicle was preparing to make a U-turn when the collision occurred. The plaintiff subsequently filed a lawsuit, alleging the driver of the striking vehicle was negligent and the vehicle owner was vicariously liable. The defendants conceded liability, and the case proceeded to trial solely on the issue of damages. The plaintiff claimed to have sustained a herniated disc at C5-6, seeking medical treatment 21 days after the incident. Treatment included chiropractic care, acupuncture, massage therapy, and hot and cold packs over several months. The plaintiff reported missing two days of work and alleged permanent neck pain, decreased range of motion, and episodes of immobility, asserting an inability to engage in activities such as dancing, playing basketball, or wearing high heels. A family medicine physician testified on the plaintiff's behalf. The defendants argued that any injuries sustained by the plaintiff resolved within 90 days of the accident, with the decreased range of motion improving within three months. A radiologist testified for the defense, stating that the plaintiff's MRIs were normal and indicated no injury. Prior to the verdict, the parties agreed to cap any damages award at $25,000, which represented the policy limits. The plaintiff had also settled a claim with the driver of the vehicle in which she was a passenger for $3,500. Following the trial, a jury awarded the plaintiff $30,000, including $10,000 for past pain and suffering and $20,000 for future pain and suffering. The final recovery was then reduced to the agreed-upon $25,000 cap.

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