Texas Hyundai Palisade Power Seat Lawsuit

Hyundai halted sales and recalled about 68,500 model-year 2026 Palisade Limited and Calligraphy SUVs after a 2-year-old girl in Ohio was killed when a rear power seat folded down and crushed her on March 7, 2026.

Need a Texas Hyundai Palisade Lawsuit Lawyer? Collen A. Clark is a true advocate for his clients and is passionate about helping Texans that have been injured or wronged. If your child or a family member was injured by a 2026 Hyundai Palisade power seat that folded down, contact our lawyers immediately. You may be entitled to compensation by filing a lawsuit.

Hyundai Recalls 68,500 Palisade SUVs for Deadly Seat Defect

In March 2026, Hyundai issued a stop-sale order and announced a pending recall for approximately 68,500 model-year 2026 Hyundai Palisade Limited and Calligraphy trim vehicles. These vehicles have power folding seats that may fail to stop moving when a person or object is in the way, which could result in serious injuries or even death.

The recall was announced on March 14, 2026, and is being finalized with the NHTSA. The recall covers 60,515 vehicles in the United States and 7,967 in Canada. All recall repairs will be performed at no cost to vehicle owners once a permanent fix is developed.

What is the Power Seat Defect?

The problem is that the 2nd and 3rd-row power seats in the 2026 Palisade Limited and Calligraphy trim SUVs may not detect contact with a person or object when the seat is folding, stowing, or sliding.

These seats are supposed to work like anti-pinch windows, and automatically stop or reverse direction when they sense resistance. In the affected Palisade SUVs, that safety mechanism can fail, allowing the folding seats to continue moving. This can crush a person in its path.

The defect affects both the power-folding stow function and the 2nd-row one-touch tilt-and-slide feature used to access the 3rd row. According to documents Hyundai submitted to NHTSA:

“In certain situations, the second- and third-row power seats may not detect contact with an occupant or object as intended.”

The problem is especially dangerous for young children, who may not be visible to adults operating the seat controls from the cargo area or the vehicle’s touchscreen. However, even adults have been injured when the power seats did not stop moving.

How Many People Were Injured?

The fatal incident that triggered the recall involved a 2-year-old girl in Ohio who was killed on March 7, 2026. But this was not the first warning sign.

Consumer Reports identified at least 3 complaints in the NHTSA database related to similar seat-folding incidents dating back to November 2025, including 2 reported injuries. In one December 2025 incident, a passenger was pinned between a folding seat and the back of the front seat after accidentally bumping the fold-up button while getting buckled up and settled.

• 1 fatality — a 2-year-old girl in Ohio, killed on March 7, 2026
• 2 additional injuries reported to NHTSA prior to the child’s death
• A third complaint from November 2025 involved a near-miss at a dealership with no injuries reported

Texas is one of the largest markets for Hyundai vehicles in the country, meaning thousands of affected Palisades are currently on Texas roads.

Which Vehicles Are Affected?

• Model: 2026 Hyundai Palisade
• Trims affected: Limited and Calligraphy only (both equipped with power 2nd and 3rd-row seats)
• Production dates: December 24, 2024 – March 11, 2026
• Units affected: 60,515 in the United States; 7,967 in Canada
• Lower trims with manual folding seats are NOT affected

What Should I Do?

Check whether your vehicle is affected at nhtsa.gov using your VIN.

If you own one of these vehicles, Hyundai urges you to keep children away from the power seat controls and out of the seat-folding area whenever the seats are in motion.

Avoid pressing the seatback button when using the 2nd-row one-touch tilt-and-slide feature during entry or exit.

Bluelink subscribers will receive an interim over-the-air software update by end of March 2026. Non-Bluelink subscribers must visit a dealership. Call Hyundai at 800-633-5151 to confirm your vehicle’s recall status. You can ask for availability of a rental vehicle until the repair is completed.

Legal Help for Hyundai Palisade Owners in Texas

The Hyundai Palisade is one of the most popular family SUVs on Texas roads. Families across Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, and Austin rely on it as their go-to vehicle for hauling kids, car seats, and everything that comes with raising a family. The Palisade was specifically advertised to parents hauling kids, which makes a defect that can crush a child in the backseat especially alarming.

Texas families loading and unloading children at school, soccer fields, and road trips face this hazard every time they operate the power seats in the 2nd or 3rd row. The defective seats can potentially fold, stow, or slide without detecting a child in the way, and the force of the moving seat is enough to kill.

Need a Hyundai Palisade Power Seat Lawyer in Texas?

Collen A. Clark is a true advocate for his clients and is passionate about helping Texans that have been injured or wronged.

Collen’s amazing success in the courtroom and well known dedication to his clients has earned him the recognition of his peers as one of The Top Trial Lawyers in Texas.”

The Clark Firm has assembled a team of trial lawyers with more than 100 years of experience, participation in over 600 jury trials, and $260 million in verdicts and/or settlements. Please use the form below to contact our law firm for a free case review.