Autoblog

Toyota settles first wrongful death suit related to unintended acceleration

Jeffrey N. Ross — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 09:57:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Lexus, Toyota

Toyota's sales seem to have rebounded from the unintended acceleration issues from 2009 and 2010, but the automaker is far from done dealing with this situation. Following a settlement worth up to $1.4 billion for economic loss to affected vehicle owners, Toyota has settled rather than going to trial in a wrongful death lawsuit stemming from an accident in Utah in 2010 that left two passengers dead. This isn't the first case in which Toyota has settled, but it was the first among a consolidated group of cases being held in Santa Ana, CA.

According to The Detroit News, this case was scheduled to take place next month, and it was for a November 2010 incident in which Paul Van Alfen and Charlene James Lloyd were killed in a Camry when, based on findings by the Utah Highway Patrol, the accelerator got stuck causing the car to speed out of control and hit a wall; the terms of the settlement were not announced.

The article says that while Toyota will settle on some cases, it doesn't plan on settling on all of them as it still wants to be able to "defend [its] product at trial." This will probably be the case in suits claiming that software for the drive-by-wire accelerator was the cause of an accident in a Toyota or Lexus vehicle. The question of whether or not the electronic accelerator played any role in this problem has been a hot-button topic since the beginning. Toyota has issued recalls in the past to attempt to prevent unintended acceleration caused by trapped floor mats and faulty accelerator pedals, but it also says driver error was to blame in some instances.

Toyota settles first wrongful death suit related to unintended acceleration originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 21 Jan 2013 09:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Why everyone loses but the lawyers in Toyota's unintended acceleration settlement

Jonathon Ramsey — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 17:29:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Toyota, Earnings/Financials

The Toyota settlement recently submitted to US District Judge James Selna for approval will cost the company anywhere from $1 billion to $1.4 billion. All to settle the class-action suit brought against it for economic losses stemming from claims of unintended acceleration. This suit only addresses the perceived loss-of-value that Toyota owners and lessees feel they have suffered, alleging their cars were the victims of unintended depreciation even if they did not directly suffer from the alleged cases of unintended/sudden acceleration. This is a separate case than the wrongful death suits brought about by the unintended acceleration brouhaha.

When the settlement was announced, this was the overview of its payouts:

Toyota will install brake override systems in all 3.25 million vehicles subjected to the floor mat entrapment recall.
Another fund of $250 million will compensate current owners whose vehicles are not eligible for the free brake override system.
A fund of $250 million will compensate former Toyota owners who sold their cars from September 1, 2009 through December 31, 2010 for lost value.
Education grants valued at $30 million will be made to independent academic institutions to further study auto safety and enhance driver education.
All 16 million current Toyota owners will be eligible for a customer care plan that warrants certain parts allegedly related to unintended acceleration for three to 10 years.

Car and Driver attempts to break down where all that largesse is going, and who's going to get large off of it. We'll start from the top. Having something like three million cars run through service departments to have brake override systems fitted with Toyota stumping up the cash, is probably a win for dealerships and suppliers and even Toyota, obliquely, according to the report. The $250-million fund to reimburse owners whose cars can't be fitted with brake override systems will see each owner get a check for anywhere from $37.50 to $125 depending on the specifics of the model in question. Nobody wins that one.

The $250 million earmarked to compensate owners and lessees for lost value might end up being disbursed to millions of people and institutions, with estimates for individual payouts being from "hundreds of dollars to over a thousand dollars." The paucity of the payout doesn't just reflect the number of payees, it also reflects the near impossibility of an owner being able to determine and prove having suffered a specific amount of financial pain beyond standard depreciation. If anyone gets a trophy from that one, Car and Driver figures it's large used car dealers who moved a lot of Toyota metal during the time span.

$200 million is going to the 85 attorneys at 25 law firms for fees, plus another potential $27 million for their expenses.

Of the $30 million allotted for studies, up to $15 million will go to university studies of safety technology, another $800,000 going specifically to a university that will study "critical gaps in awareness and practice regarding defensive driving skills" including "driver pedal misapplication." The results from that study will be broadcast to the nation via a public safety campaign that will use some portion of the leftover $14.2 million dollars. Obviously, universities and advertising media make out all right with this, and hey, maybe we can all benefit from more research into safety technology.

The reporting doesn't address the extended customer care plan, but since the causes of alleged unintended acceleration haven't gone beyond suppositions of floor mats and pedal misapplication, and since the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and NASA cleared the vehicles of any defects causative of unintended acceleration, good luck getting that warranty honored. Unless you need new floor mats in 2022.

That gets us up to a potential spend of $530 million so far, plus the cost of the brake override fitment. On top of that is another $200 million going to the 85 attorneys at 25 law firms for fees, plus another potential $27 million for their expenses. If the two hundred mil were split evenly among the 85 (it won't be - it will be disbursed to each according to their effort), that would make each advocate worth more than $2.35 million. And that's before expenses. It's pretty clear who wins that one, isn't it?

And assuming the settlement is approved by the judge, you'd have to figure Toyota wins. The company is about to be declared the largest automaker in the world again and it's predicting record sales for 2013. It could enter 2013 with this part of the ugly episode behind it and using money that has been saved just for the purpose. Not only that, the proposed settlement is less money than outsiders were expecting - word of the estimates actually sent Toyota's stock price up. So some things, like a few lawyers' bonuses, would change, otherwise much has remained just the same...

Why everyone loses but the lawyers in Toyota's unintended acceleration settlement originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 31 Dec 2012 17:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Toyota shares rise on smaller-than-expected settlement news

George Kennedy — Thu, 27 Dec 2012 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: Recalls, Safety, Toyota

Following news that Toyota has proposed a massive settlement to address the owners of vehicles effected by the unintended acceleration recall, shares for the automaker are up 2.6 percent. Over the course of this year, Toyota's stock has jumped 51.7 percent.

"My initiate reaction would be 'that's it'... $1 billion charge that covers recalls and everything else and you are looking at a $250 million compensation fund, that's nothing," said a senior trader at a foreign brokerage to Automotive News. This settlement has been set aside to cover class-action lawsuits from 16 million owners of Toyota, Lexus and Scion vehicles and is separate from other impending lawsuits - including one consumer protection suit in California and another unfair-business-practices case brought on by 28 attorneys general.

In other positive news for investors, the Japanese yen has weakened compared to the US dollar. That likely means improved financial performance from the big Japanese automakers, the largest of which is Toyota.

Toyota shares rise on smaller-than-expected settlement news originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 27 Dec 2012 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Toyota proposes economic loss settlement worth up to $1.4 billion over unintended acceleration claims

John Neff — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 23:15:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Recalls, Safety, Toyota, Earnings/Financials

Toyota announced a proposal today worth over a billion dollars to settle civil claims of economic loss related to alleged cases of sudden unintended acceleration in its vehicles from 2009-2010. Estimates place the cost of the settlement between $1.1 billion and $1.4 billion, which would, according to lawyers for the plaintiffs, make it the largest of its type in US history.

US District Judge James Selna, who is presiding over the case in California, will review Toyota's settlement proposal as early as Friday.

The details of the settlement, as given by Toyota in an official statement and obtained from a press release issued by lawyers for the plaintiffs, are as follows.

Toyota will install brake override systems in all 3.25 million vehicles subjected to the floor mat entrapment recall.
A fund of $250 million will compensate former Toyota owners who sold their cars from September 1, 2009 through December 31, 2010 for lost value.
Another fund of $250 million will compensate current owners whose vehicles are not eligible for the free brake override system.
All 16 million current Toyota owners will be eligible for a customer care plan that warrants certain parts allegedly related to unintended acceleration for three to 10 years.
Education grants valued at $30 million will be made to independent academic institutions to further study auto safety and enhance driver education.

As mentioned above, the settlement relates only to claims of economic loss, and thus does not cover wrongful death claims, the first trail for which is slated to begin in February 2013.

Also worth noting is that investigations by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and NASA engineers concluded that electronics were not at fault in reports of unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles, leaving only either those faulty floor mats or driver error as likely causes. Feel free to read through the entire press release below.

Continue reading Toyota proposes economic loss settlement worth up to $1.4 billion over unintended acceleration claims

Toyota proposes economic loss settlement worth up to $1.4 billion over unintended acceleration claims originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 26 Dec 2012 23:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Ruling says Toyota can't require arbitration for unintended acceleration plaintiffs

Jonathon Ramsey — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 13:29:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Toyota

U.S. District Judge James Selna - who has presided over the unintended acceleration cases against Toyota since 2010 - says the automaker does not have the right to compel 20 named plaintiffs into arbitration. The plaintiffs are seeking class-action status for lawsuits covering economic losses from the alleged issue of unintended acceleration. Toyota had maintained that leasing and purchase agreements signed by the owners denies owners the right to class-action litigation.

According to Bloomberg, although the ruling covers all 20, the are two kinds of plaintiffs in this instance. The judge decided that Toyota had lost its right to arbitration with fifteen of the plaintiffs only because Toyota waited so long to pursue it. Selna concluded that since the plaintiffs had come so far in the litigation process that "They would be prejudiced if their claims were required to be submitted to arbitration now."

Selna further denied Toyota's right to arbitration with the remaining five because "the carmaker wasn't a party to the arbitration agreements between the plaintiffs and the Toyota dealers." The ruling finalizes the tentative decision Selna issued last month.

Class-action status for the plaintiffs, however, has not yet been granted. Three trials are scheduled for next year, and they will be used to set precedents for evidence, liability and theories. It is expected that a final decision on class-action status will come after the conclusion of those three cases.

Ruling says Toyota can't require arbitration for unintended acceleration plaintiffs originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 13 Mar 2012 13:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Paice drags Hyundai, Kia into long-running hybrid patent fight with Toyota

Sebastian Blanco — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 10:02:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Technology, Hyundai, Kia, Toyota

With all the news coming out recently about the small claims lawsuit over the Honda Civic Hybrid, readers may have forgotten the name behind a long-running legal issue over Toyota's hybrid system: Paice. The latest development is that Paice and the Abell Foundation (an investor in Paice) have sued Hyundai and Kia over the gas-electric technology used in the Optima and Sonata hybrids (pictured), which ~~shares some parts with~~ Paice says infringes its patents, just as it says Toyota's Hybrid Synergy Drive does. Read up on the details of Alex Severinsky's story here.

According to Automotive News, Paice claims that Hyundai and Kia should have known that Toyota was dealing with legal issues - especially since Paice has been contacting Hyundai about the issue - and says that the Korean automakers are infringing upon three patents that Paice owns. Toyota and Paice settled their long-looming hybrid patent infringement case in 2010 after eight years, during which time the courts routinely rejected Toyota's request to dismiss the case. Toyota eventually paid royalties to Paice for the Prius, Highlander Hybrid and Lexus RX400h models it sold.

Paice drags Hyundai, Kia into long-running hybrid patent fight with Toyota originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 21 Feb 2012 10:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Toyota's first unintended acceleration trial dismissed on technicality

Zach Bowman — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 10:02:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Toyota

U.S. District Judge James V. Selna has dismissed the first unintended acceleration lawsuit against Toyota in California on the grounds that it should have been filed in Utah. Automotive News reports that the case was brought to court by the families of two people killed in a Utah crash in 2010.

Judge Selna found that a federal warranty claim in the lawsuit failed to meet a required threshold of $50,000. The warranty claim was levied toward the dealer that sold the vehicle, and since the judge ruled that the plaintiffs couldn't use personal injury or punitive damages in warranty claim, the lawsuit fell short of the threshold. That meant that the case fell back under Utah jurisdiction.

Meanwhile, Mark Robinson, the plaintiffs' attorney, said that he's already working to draft another complaint that leaves the dealer out as a defendant altogether. Doing so will allow the suit to go forward seeking full punitive damages. The suit alleges that Toyota failed to install a brake override system or otherwise prevent unintended acceleration. The case is thought to be a litmus test for similar suits around the country.

Toyota's first unintended acceleration trial dismissed on technicality originally appeared on Autoblog on Sat, 01 Oct 2011 10:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Judge's ruling paves way for owners to sue Toyota over economic losses *UPDATE

Jeff Glucker — Wed, 18 May 2011 15:02:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Toyota

If Toyota was hoping to end its ongoing unintended acceleration-related legal issues, the latest bit of courtroom news will make the automaker quite unhappy. U.S. District Judge James Selna has ruled that vehicle owners can sue Toyota over economic losses. Some Toyota owners claim the automaker is responsible for diminished resale value of vehicles wearing the Toyota badge.

"A vehicle with a defect is worth less than one without a defect," said Selna.

Toyota, however, has stated that it remains confident it will emerge from the courtroom victorious. Selna's ruling moves the burden of proof over to the plaintiff's lawyers, and Toyota believes that no such proof of wrong-doing on its part exists. Lawyers for the plaintiffs will be tasked with proving that the automaker was aware of a defect and chose to ignore it.

One particular issue from Toyota's point of view, with regards to James Selna's ruling, is the judge has applied a California law to the case. One that may make it easier for plaintiffs to recover damages. Toyota argues that vehicle owners from all over the country are involved in the lawsuit, and therefore local state laws should be applied with respect to the owner's location. Either way, it appears that Toyota's legal drama is going to continue for quite some time.

*UPDATE: Toyota reached out to Autoblog.com for clarification. It appears the ruling has not yet come down, but that Selna is merely considering the application of California law to a case that reaches across the entire country.

Judge's ruling paves way for owners to sue Toyota over economic losses *UPDATE originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 18 May 2011 15:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Report: CA court rejects class action suit against Toyota over service contracts

Zach Bowman — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 17:59:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Toyota

The California court system has found that Toyota Motor Insurance Services does not violate the state's consumer warranty law. According to Automotive News, a court of appeal found that the contracts offer enough services outside of the factory warranty to be considered legal. Toyota was originally sued after Weber DeSiqueira purchased a then-new 2007 Tundra. At the time, the vehicle came with a three-year, 36,000 mile warranty, but DeSiqueira also laid down $1,145 for a Toyota Extra Care Vehicle Service Agreement. The lawsuit alleged that the service agreement covered the same items as the factory, putting the Japanese automaker in violation of the California warranty law.

But a Los Angeles judge dismissed the case without allowing it to go to trial. DeSiqueira appealed, and a three-judge panel unanimously decided that the automaker's service agreement and the factory warranty are not identical. The plaintiff sought damages and retribution in the form of a refund for the price of the service agreement for himself and other car buyers who had opted into the program.

Despite the fact that the appeals court effectively scuttled Desiqueira's lawsuit, one judge did suggest that the consumer may have a legitimate claim that Toyota engages in deceptive sales practices by leading buyers to believe that the service agreement offers greater protection than it actually does.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req]

Report: CA court rejects class action suit against Toyota over service contracts originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 17:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Report: Toyota wins right to view unintended acceleration plaintiff data

Zach Bowman — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 14:20:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Toyota

Toyota has been granted the ability to gather financial data on 81 plaintiffs filing lawsuits against the automaker over losses associated with claims of unintended acceleration. According to The Salt Lake Tribune, two private judges ruled that the automaker could, in fact, secure information from banks, lending and insurance institutions. Lawyers working for Toyota have argued that since the cases deal directly with the value of the plaintiffs' vehicles, the company is entitled to know just how much the cars were worth to begin with. In fact, most of the information has already been accumulated by Toyota, and the plaintiff's privacy is protected by a special court order.

Lawyers representing the plaintiffs, meanwhile, say that the financial information is irrelevant and "highly personal." Furthermore, there's some concern that private information like social security numbers and health history may be needlessly revealed during court proceedings. That argument apparently didn't stand up in front of the court.

[Source: The Salt Lake Tribune]

Report: Toyota wins right to view unintended acceleration plaintiff data originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 17 Mar 2011 14:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Report: Toyota pushing to dismiss sudden acceleration class action over NASA findings

Jeff Glucker — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 10:33:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Toyota

Toyota is facing down a lawsuit that cites unintended acceleration as the cause of several accidents and a greater-than-normal reduction in resale values. Due to recent findings by NASA, Toyota now has more ammunition for its legal efforts to get these allegations dismissed.

The automaker already attempted to have this case dismissed back in November of 2010. At the time, Judge James Selna declined to dismiss the suit based on the evidence presented by Toyota. This time, however, Toyota is armed with research conducted jointly by the space experts at NASA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration which indicates that there are no electronic culprits to blame for the unintended acceleration phenomenon.

[Source: Los Angeles Times]

Report: Toyota pushing to dismiss sudden acceleration class action over NASA findings originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 18 Feb 2011 10:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Report: Keyless start systems blamed for CO-related fatalities

Zach Bowman — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 18:32:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Technology, Lexus

According to WMGT Channel 41 of Georgia, automakers are facing increasing scrutiny regarding the safety of their keyless start systems. According to the NBC affiliate, there are at least three carbon-dioxide related deaths - one in New York, and a pair in Florida - that are being blamed on the technology.

In one case, the family of a Whitestone, New York man is suing Toyota for his wrongful death. According to an older report from the New York Daily News, the family alleges that on February 27, 2009, Mary Rivera parked her Lexus in the attached garage of the home she shared with Ernest Codelia Jr. and accidentally left the engine running. The next day, Codelia was found dead in his bed of carbon monoxide poisoning while Rivera was discovered unconscious on the bedroom floor. She survived the incident, but suffers from brain damage as a result.

Codelia's family is alleging that that the keyless ignition system on the Lexus is to blame for the tragedy and that Toyota should have installed a shutdown switch to kill the engine if the vehicle is unoccupied or unmoved after a certain period of time. The lawsuit says that the keyless ignition system violates federal safety standards because owners can leave the vehicle running even with the key fob in their pocket.

It is at this point that we must note that in our experience, Toyota's keyless ignition mechanism operates in essentially the same manner as every other system used by other automakers, and that cars equipped with the technology are programmed to deliver both audible and visual warnings if the driver attempts to leave the car without first shutting off the engine.

Rivera, meanwhile, has no recollection of leaving the car running, presumably because the engine is so quiet. The family's lawyer says that she "somehow feels responsible" for the tragedy. Thanks for the tip, Jon!

[Sources: WMGT Channel 41, New York Daily News]

Report: Keyless start systems blamed for CO-related fatalities originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 07 Feb 2011 18:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Judge: First Toyota lawsuits likely to go on trial in 2013

Zach Bowman — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 09:29:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Toyota

It looks like it will be some time before Toyota enters the court room for the very first of the mountain of lawsuits that were bundled by a federal judge in relation to sudden-acceleration claims.

A federal judge has said he wants the first of the cases to be tried in the beginning months of 2013. That means the pre-trial discovery of evidence should be wrapped up by the end of 2012. U.S. District Judge James V. Selna made the announcement at a hearing on January 14. For those keeping track, Toyota is staring down the barrel of around 400 lawsuits related to the recall of over 8 million vehicles.

According to Bloomberg, Selna specifically urged trial lawyers to select "bellweather cases" designed to test the claims of both plaintiffs and the defendant sooner rather than later. According to the report, attorneys on both sides of the cases have agreed to Selna's time table.

Meanwhile, another set of personal injury cases are set to go to trial in Texas in February or March of 2012.

[Source: Bloomberg]

Judge: First Toyota lawsuits likely to go on trial in 2013 originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 20 Jan 2011 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

AP: Seven insurance companies sue Toyota over unintended acceleration-related claims

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 15:34:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Toyota, Earnings/Financials

Can't say we didn't see this one coming... According to the Associated Press, seven insurance companies* are suing Toyota in California court for damages in excess of $230,000. We suspect that figure could rise, as it's derived from just 14 of the alleged 725 total accidents the insurers claim Toyota is at least partially at fault for.

The suit reportedly alleges that Toyota is at fault for accidents blamed on unintended acceleration because the Japanese automaker failed to equip its vehicles with a brake override system that would electronically force the engine to return to idle if both the accelerator and brake pedals were pressed at the same time. After the recall hubbub first began, Toyota announced that all of its future models will come with this technology.

For its part, a Toyota spokesperson unsurprisingly responded that "any allegation that a vehicle-based defect is the cause of unintended acceleration in this or any other complaint is completely unfounded and has no basis." In December of 2010, Toyota agreed to settle a high-profile case in California regarding unintended acceleration in a Toyota Camry for $10 million, though it never admitted any wrongdoing. Four people were killed in that accident.

In October of 2010, Allstate filed suit against Toyota seeking $3 million in compensation as a result of 270 claims of sudden acceleration.

*The seven insurance companies bringing forth this suit are: American Automobile Insurance Co., Fireman's Fund Insurance, National Surety Corp., Ameriprise Insurance, IDS Property Casualty Insurance, Motorists Mutual Insurance and American Hardware Mutual Insurance.

[Source: Associated Press via AOL Autos | Image: David McNew/Getty]

AP: Seven insurance companies sue Toyota over unintended acceleration-related claims originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 04 Jan 2011 15:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Report: Toyota to pay out $10M in Lexus runaway lawsuit

Zach Bowman — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 10:28:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Recalls, Safety, Lexus, Toyota

According to The Detroit Free Press, Toyota has agreed to settle the case in which four people died in a runaway Lexus to the tune of $10 million. The crash, which occurred in August 2009, killed an off-duty police officer, his wife, brother-in-law and daughter and set off a torrent of recalls and investigations into just how long the Japanese automaker had known about unintended acceleration issues. In this case, the accelerator was trapped by the wrong-sized floor mat, but Toyota would later recall vehicles not only with similar issues, but with pedals that could stick as well.

Originally, both Toyota and the plaintiffs wanted to have the results of the settlement sealed, though Superior Court Judge Anthony Mohr decided that the public had a right to know the details of the case, and that right outweighed arguments from both sides. As with the two civil penalties that Toyota has paid to the federal government for failing to notify safety officials of the problems in a timely manner, Toyota has not admitted any wrong doing by settling the case.

[Source: The Detroit Free Press]

Report: Toyota to pay out $10M in Lexus runaway lawsuit originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 24 Dec 2010 10:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Toyota suing Old GM over shutdown of NUMMI plant?

Jeff Glucker — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Plants/Manufacturing, GM, Toyota, Earnings/Financials

Toyota is still upset about how its joint NUMMI venture with General Motors was handled, and according to Automotive News, the Japanese automaker has now filed a lawsuit to the tune of $73 million. The suit is against Motors Liquidation Co., the company created to pick through the discarded ashes of "Old GM."

Toyota states that when General Motors pulled away from the NUMMI facility in 2009, it breached the contract between the two automakers. The $73 million covers research and development costs that were poured into the Fremont, California facility before it was shuttered last year.

The plant now belongs to Tesla, who purchased it from Toyota in May of 2010, for $42 million.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req.]

Toyota suing Old GM over shutdown of NUMMI plant? originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 01 Dec 2010 15:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

AP: Judge won't dismiss Toyota unintended acceleration lawsuits

Zach Bowman — Mon, 22 Nov 2010 15:59:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Toyota

Last week, U.S. District Judge James Selna announced that he would not dismiss a bevy of lawsuits against Toyota that claim the company's rash of unintended acceleration complaints have caused vehicle values to fall. The company's attorneys had attempted to argue that around 24 of the suits should be thrown out on the basis that the plaintiffs hadn't suffered any financial loss and that owners hadn't spent money in an effort to fix whatever ailment befell their vehicle. Meanwhile, lawyers on the other side of the aisle argue contend that owners who didn't suffer through an unintended acceleration event still have a case against the Japanese automaker.

Selna seemed to side with the plaintiffs, though the judge is slated to come to a final decision later this week.

Toyota is worried that if the cases are allowed to proceed, a flood of new litigation will wash in from anyone with a Toyota in the driveway.

[Source: The Crestview News Bulletin]

AP: Judge won't dismiss Toyota unintended acceleration lawsuits originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 22 Nov 2010 15:59:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Report: Suit alleges Toyota pushed owners to stay quiet about unintended acceleration

Zach Bowman — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 08:58:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Toyota

Something tells us we're going to be wading through news of various lawsuits against Toyota for a good while. According to various news sources, the Japanese automaker is now facing accusations that it clandestinely sought to buy back vehicles with unintended acceleration issues in order to hide the problem from the public. Part of the alleged buy-back deal involved having owners sign a confidentiality statement that forbade them from talking to anyone - including regulators. In addition, those who took part in the program could not sue Toyota later down the line.

The lawsuit also points to internal Toyota documents that may indicate that company technicians and engineers were actually able to replicate the problem. At the heart of the suit, plaintiffs are alleging that Toyota acted negligently by failing to act on complaints of unintended acceleration for years.

The lawsuit bundles together more than a dozen plaintiffs into one larger, easier to handle suit.

Toyota, meanwhile, says that those who sold back their vehicles were simply asked to sign a waiver of liability - consumers weren't required to sign and the waiver didn't say anything about confidentiality. Thanks for the tip, Rudy!

[Sources: The Detroit Free Press, Bloomberg, Reuters via Yahoo News | Image: Ramin Talaie/Getty]

Report: Suit alleges Toyota pushed owners to stay quiet about unintended acceleration originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 29 Oct 2010 08:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Toyota sued by Allstate over sudden-acceleration insurance claims

Jeff Glucker — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 15:28:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal, Safety, Toyota

Like every other automaker, Toyota is always looking to increase the safety of its vehicles, be it through investing millions of dollars towards R&D or incorporating new safety measures as standard equipment. It's also working hard to fully restore its recently tarnished public image. Hurdles do keep popping up now and again, however, with the latest one has been placed by Allstate. According to the Los Angeles Times, the insurance company is seeking $3 million in compensation as a result of 270 claims of sudden acceleration.

The suit was filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court on October 1, 2010. Allstate claims that the suit was a last resort as a result of failed out-of-court negotiations. However, a spokesperson for the automakers says "the unfounded allegations in this suit have no basis."

Toyota recently announced that it has resolved issues with over five million vehicles, as a result of three main recalls. Nearly two million of the vehicles had stuck accelerator issues while the other three million had their floormats replaced or repaired.

Complaints of sudden acceleration have fallen by 80 percent since April of 2010. At its peak, the claims averaged 800 per week but have since fallen to around 150 per week. Toyota has dispatched safety review teams to examine over 4,000 vehicles and has yet to find an instance of sudden acceleration being caused by anything electrical. Regardless, the automaker is increasing the standard safety features fitted to its vehicles, the latest of which is Smart-Stop, a brake override system that engages when the throttle is open greater than 33 percent, the vehicle speed is over 5 miles per hour and the brakes are pressed firmly. Allstate believes that Toyota vehicles should already have featured this technology.

[Source: Los Angeles Times | Image: Ramin Talaie/Getty]

Toyota sued by Allstate over sudden-acceleration insurance claims originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 05 Oct 2010 15:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Report: Toyota settles lawsuit tied to crash that triggered recalls

Chris Shunk — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 08:07:00 EST

Filed under: Government/Legal

For a recap of the various Toyota recalls, visit our comprehensive guide

Toyota owners had been contacting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about unintended acceleration issues for years, but one tragedy put the spotlight on Toyota's problems. Last August, California police officer Mark Saylor and three family members died when the family's 2009 Lexus ES 350 rental flipped and caught fire after a trapped floor mat reportedly caused the vehicle to speed out of control. A month later Toyota, officially recalled 3.8 million vehicles for floor mat issues and by February 2010 over eight million vehicles were recalled for unintended acceleration issues worldwide.

Automotive News now reports that Toyota has settled with the family of Mark Saylor for an undisclosed financial sum just over a year after the accident. Toyota reportedly declined to offer any insight into the agreement, and there's a good chance we'll never know how much money the company paid to settle the case out of court. Toyota is likely years away from putting all of its legal troubles in the rearview mirror, though. The spate of recalls generated numerous other lawsuits and several previously decided court cases were re-opened after the automaker's troubles became front-page headlines.

[Source: Automotive News sub. req.]

Report: Toyota settles lawsuit tied to crash that triggered recalls originally appeared on Autoblog on Sun, 19 Sep 2010 08:07:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments