Driver says SUV was in park but started rolling away with grandson inside

CHARLOTTE — A Conover woman says she put her SUV in park so she could get out for a moment, but the car started rolling away with her grandson inside it.

Laura Torres says this happened in 2019. She was driving a 2016 Ford Escape.

Torres says she had to get something out of the back of her SUV, so she put it in park. She left the car running and left the parking brake off while she got out for a moment.

“I walked to the back and my car started rolling down the hill,” she said.

She says her two-year-old grandson was in the back seat.

“So I was trying to run to get into the car, to try to pull the emergency brake. And as I was trying to get myself in the car, the force was too strong, and I couldn’t,” she said.

Torres says the SUV hit some trees and stopped. She says her grandson wasn’t hurt, but that she was. She says her hand was swollen and her leg had to be put in a brace.

Fast forward to last year.

Ford recalled almost 3 million vehicles, including Torres’s, for this exact reason, saying the vehicles may look like they’re in park, but if the parking brake is off, they could still roll. “The problem is due to a faulty bushing that attaches the shifter cable to the transmission,” according to the recall notice.

“I thought, ‘Wow,’” Torres said.

Torres says the Escape was totaled and that insurance covered it, so she doesn’t expect Ford to pay for it. But she feels the company should pay for the emotional toll she says she and her grandson suffered.

“Heart-wrenching and just very painful, dramatic,” she said.

Action 9′s Jason Stoogenke emailed Ford. The company seemed willing to pay for repairs if Torres still had the SUV, but since she doesn’t it says it’s not sure how the company “can best support her” now.

If you have a problem with your car and there ends up being a recall for that issue:

You should be able to get it fixed for free and reimbursed for any money you spend out of pocket.

If you don’t have the car anymore, your best bet may be to talk to a lawyer. Torres is working on that.

Two good reminders here:

- Use your parking brake.

- Check your car for recalls here.

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