Ford and Firestone

Case #1 Ford and Firestone

1. Can a firm guarantee product safety?

I believe a firm can guarantee product safety but only after all tests and experiments with products have been conducted. Obviously nothing is 100 percent guarenteed and defects can occur, but a firm needs to own up to its mistakes and constantly be trying to perfect its product as much as possible before they willingly sell to consumers.

1. Which company do you think was most to blame based on the information presented?

I believe Firestone was more at fault because of the information that stated that Firestone employees were making defective tires with materials that shouldn’t have been used, which caused them to become defective during performance. Also the fact that Ford had to replace 13 million tires is a clear indication that these tires being issued by Firestone weren’t safe for consumers. Lastly, Firestone had to close plants, lost huge market share and basically had to resurrect themselves indicating, that Firestone had major issues as a company.

1. If an explorer driver never checks the tire pressure and drives way above the speed limit he has no one to blame but himself for an accident- not the vehicle or tires… Discuss

I believe that if a driver of a vehicle never checks his tire pressure and drives above the enforced speed limit then it is the drivers fault if there is an accident.  I believe this because a person who owns a vehicle is responsible for the maintenance of the car and making sure it is safe before operating it on a road. Also, roads have speed limits for a reason, so if  a careless driver is moving a speeds above the stated limit and faster than the car can handle especially for long periods of time, then it should be the drivers fault for their carelessness.

1. Do you think the government should be to blame for the explorer deaths and injuries?

The government shouldn’t have all the blame but it should be blamed for allowing Ford and Firestone to sell consumers defective products. The government has the right to inspect these products and force both companies to fix these major present issues before allowing the sell of these products to consumers, who are ultimately at risk.

1. Would you give the credence to the “community champion” awards bestowed by a consumer advocacy group founded by the Association of Trial lawyers, and given to Alan Hogan in June 2001 for exposing carless tire production?

Yes I would give credence to the “community champion” Alan Hogan for exposing careless tire production. I give him credence because of his bravery of exposing defective tire production. Many companies try to hide and cover up their flaws and most employees know of the wrong doing, but most people are cared to speak out because they have families to feed and are trying to earn a living. If there were more people like Alan Hogan, who are brave enough to speak out then a lot more lives would be saved before it’s too late.