Toyota Facing $3.6 Billion Class-Action Lawsuit
Feb. 17, 2010 – Delays in addressing potential safety issues with various vehicles during the past decade have made the Toyota Motor Corporation the target of a spate of class-action lawsuits seeking up to $3.6 billion in damages.
At least 44 class-action lawsuits have been filed in various state and federal courts at an estimated cost of about $600 per recalled vehicle and $3.6 billion combined, according to Northeastern University law professor Tim Howard. Howard is helping to coordinate lawsuits against Toyota, and a legal hearing is scheduled March 25 in San Diego to determine which of the courts will preside over a single national class-action lawsuit.
Among parties suing Toyota are owners of recalled vehicles and several dealerships and auto brokers wanting compensation for losses incurred when Toyota officials halted all sales of recalled models. Federal officials investigating Toyota’s response to consumer complaints over the past decade also could fine the firm.
Officials for the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration earlier this week said they have received complaints of at least 34 deaths caused by sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles since 2000, according to an Associated Press news report. Toyota Motor Corporation officials recently recalled nearly 10 million vehicles worldwide to correct problems with vehicles suddenly accelerating and other problems.
The first recall issue last year was to fix floor mat problems blamed for causing some vehicles to accelerate suddenly. When that fix failed to fully address safety issues, Toyota issued another recall of several popular models, including the Camry and Corolla, to replace gas pedals in millions more vehicles in China, Europe and North America. And Toyota officials last week issued yet another recall, this time for the automaker’s popular Prius hybrid and other hybrid vehicles for braking problems blamed on faulty software programming.
The latest recall comes in addition to the about 9 million vehicles across eight model lines Toyota officials earlier recalled worldwide – including about 2.3 million vehicles in the United States.
Federal officials recently opened an investigation into the high number of complaints they have received regarding braking issues with the Toyota Prius, which was not among the initial eight models the auto manufacturer recalled worldwide last month for problems with sticking gas pedals and sudden acceleration.
Federal officials said combining all the complaints they have received on all eight recalled 2010 Toyota models wouldn’t amount to half of the 171 complaints already received on the 2010 Toyota Prius. Some 124 of the complaints about the Prius focus on similar braking issues. By comparison, Toyota recalled its Corolla model, which only had 33 complaints thus far in 2010.
The Japanese automaker has recalled all Camry models manufactured from 2007 to 2010 as well as 2009 through current-year models Corolla, Matrix and the RAV4. Also recalled are the 2005 through 2010 Avalon, the 2008 through 2010 Sequoia and the 2010 Highlander. The recall covers about 9 million vehicles sold in North America, China and Europe.
The automaker last week recalled another 437,000 hybrid vehicles due to braking problems, including its popular Prius hybrid model, the Lexus HS259h hybrid sedan and the Sai hybrid compact sedan. Company officials say a simple software fix will eliminate potential braking problems when the vehicles are driven over uneven terrain and take about 40 minutes to complete at local Toyota dealerships. Owners have complained of vehicle braking systems not operating properly when driving over speed bumps and other uneven surfaces.
Toyota officials say the combined recall efforts could cost the company about $2 billion. Toyota is the world’s largest manufacturer of automobiles and recently overtook bankrupted General Motors as the world’s top automaker.