Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2013 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Toyota sudden acceleration class action may cover 22 million owners]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2013/05/16/toyota-sudden-acceleration-class-action-may-cover-22-million-own/http://www.autoblog.com/2013/05/16/toyota-sudden-acceleration-class-action-may-cover-22-million-own/http://www.autoblog.com/2013/05/16/toyota-sudden-acceleration-class-action-may-cover-22-million-own/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Distorted Toyota logo

A total of 22.6 million current and former Toyota owners have been sent notices that they may be eligible to receive compensation from the automaker for damages related to the unintended acceleration fiasco that has dominated headlines in 2009 and 2010. The total payout may be as high as $1.63 billion, according to The Detroit News.

Steve Berman, a lawyer for the owners, calls the potential deal "a landmark, if not a record, settlement in automobile defects class action litigation in the United States." Still, there's some debate about whether or not Toyota's proposed settlement is fair, as it includes $30 million for safety research and driver education programs - in other words, Toyota seems to be suggesting that drivers need more education on how to drive their correctly working and fully functional vehicles. For those keeping track, Toyota would also be paying lawyer fees of $200 million.

A US District Judge in California is scheduled to hold a so-called "fairness hearing" on June 14 that could decide the fate of this particular settlement. Further courtroom wrangling will be required to hash out any wrongful death suits levied against Toyota stemming from unintended acceleration claims, as those are not part of this class-action suit.

Toyota sudden acceleration class action may cover 22 million owners originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 16 May 2013 09:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>class actionsudden accelerationtoyotatoyota settlementunintended accelerationThu, 16 May 2013 09:29:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/20568838/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2013/05/16/toyota-sudden-acceleration-class-action-may-cover-22-million-own/20568838/article-detail.xml 20568838 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2013/05/toyota-distortion_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2013/05/toyota-distortion.jpg <![CDATA[Toyota settles first wrongful death suit related to unintended acceleration]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2013/01/21/toyota-settles-first-wrongful-death-suit-related-to-unintended-a/http://www.autoblog.com/2013/01/21/toyota-settles-first-wrongful-death-suit-related-to-unintended-a/http://www.autoblog.com/2013/01/21/toyota-settles-first-wrongful-death-suit-related-to-unintended-a/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Toyota emblem

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]]>lexuspedal entrapmentstuck acceleratortoyotatoyota lawsuittoyota settlementunintended accelerationwrongful death lawsuitMon, 21 Jan 2013 09:57:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/20433065/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2013/01/21/toyota-settles-first-wrongful-death-suit-related-to-unintended-a/20433065/article-detail.xml 20433065 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2011/12/toyota-logo_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2011/12/toyota-logo.jpg <![CDATA[Why everyone loses but the lawyers in Toyota's unintended acceleration settlement]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/31/why-everyone-loses-but-the-lawyers-in-toyotas-unintended-accele/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/31/why-everyone-loses-but-the-lawyers-in-toyotas-unintended-accele/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/31/why-everyone-loses-but-the-lawyers-in-toyotas-unintended-accele/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

2010 Toyota Camry undergoing recall repair

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]]>camryhagens bermanjames selnalawsuitnhtsasettlementsudden accelerationtoyotatoyota lawsuittoyota safetytoyota settlementunintended accelerationMon, 31 Dec 2012 17:29:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/20414043/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2012/12/31/why-everyone-loses-but-the-lawyers-in-toyotas-unintended-accele/20414043/article-detail.xml 20414043 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/12/2010-toyota-camry-recall-repair_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/12/2010-toyota-camry-recall-repair.jpg <![CDATA[Toyota shares rise on smaller-than-expected settlement news]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/27/toyota-shares-rise-on-smaller-than-expected-settlement-news/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/27/toyota-shares-rise-on-smaller-than-expected-settlement-news/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/27/toyota-shares-rise-on-smaller-than-expected-settlement-news/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Toyota emblem

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]]>National Highway Traffic Safety Administrationnhtsasettlementtoyotatoyota lawsuittoyota settlementtoyota unintended accelerationunintended accelerationThu, 27 Dec 2012 18:00:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/20411961/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2012/12/27/toyota-shares-rise-on-smaller-than-expected-settlement-news/20411961/article-detail.xml 20411961 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/12/toyota-badge_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/12/toyota-badge.jpg <![CDATA[Toyota proposes economic loss settlement worth up to $1.4 billion over unintended acceleration claims]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/26/toyota-proposes-economic-loss-settlement-worth-up-to-1-4-billio/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/26/toyota-proposes-economic-loss-settlement-worth-up-to-1-4-billio/http://www.autoblog.com/2012/12/26/toyota-proposes-economic-loss-settlement-worth-up-to-1-4-billio/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,



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]]>californiahagens bermanjames selnalawsuitsettlementsudden unintended accelerationtoyotatoyota lawsuittoyota settlementunintended accelerationWed, 26 Dec 2012 23:15:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/20411739/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2012/12/26/toyota-proposes-economic-loss-settlement-worth-up-to-1-4-billio/20411739/article-detail.xml 20411739 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/12/toyotalawsuit-opt_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2012/12/toyotalawsuit-opt.jpg <![CDATA[Report: Toyota to pay out $10M in Lexus runaway lawsuit]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/24/report-toyota-to-pay-out-10m-in-lexus-runaway-lawsuit/http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/24/report-toyota-to-pay-out-10m-in-lexus-runaway-lawsuit/http://www.autoblog.com/2010/12/24/report-toyota-to-pay-out-10m-in-lexus-runaway-lawsuit/#commentsFiled under: , , , ,

Toyota SettlementAccording 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]]>recalltoyotatoyota 10 millon settlementtoyota lawsuittoyota recalltoyota settlementFri, 24 Dec 2010 10:28:00 EST http://www.autoblog.com/feed/19776285/article-comments.xml http://www.autoblog.com/feed/2010/12/24/report-toyota-to-pay-out-10m-in-lexus-runaway-lawsuit/19776285/article-detail.xml 19776285 http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2010/12/toyota-250-1293191532_thumbnail.jpg http://www.blogcdn.com/www.autoblog.com/media/2010/12/toyota-250-1293191532.jpg -1 2