At the age of 3, Teddy Harrison was thrown from his mother's SUV when it was hit by an uninsured driver. 

A Minnesota couple whose 3-year-old son suffered brain injuries in a car accident has won a $100,000 settlement from their auto insurer by having the child sue them for negligent installation of his car seat.

The Minnesota Supreme Court granted summary judgment to Teddy Harrison, now 9, finding that the state's “seat belt gag rule” does not apply to his suit against his parents.

“[T]he plain language of [the gag rule exception] permits an action to be made against a child’s parents for negligent installation and maintenance of a child passenger restraint system,” the court said in a decision that required the Harrison family's insurer to settle Teddy's claim for the full limit of its policy.

Teddy sued his parents –- with their support –- to collect from Progressive Auto Insurance after settling a separate case against the manufacturer of his car seat. Progressive invoked the gag rule, which bars the introduction of any evidence of “the installation or failure of installation of seat belts or a child passenger restraint system” in auto accident cases.

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