NATIONAL – According to the Los Angeles Times (10/5, Bensinger, Vartabedian) reports, “Allstate Corp. has sued Toyota Motor Corp. over sudden-acceleration-related claims it has paid, alleging that the accidents were caused by vehicle defects. The suit, filed Friday in Los Angeles County Superior Court, seeks $3 million in compensation for about 270 claims that the insurance…
NATIONAL – Toyota is being accused of planting a story in The Wall Street Journal asserting that federal regulators were blaming dozens of unintended acceleration incidents involving the company’s vehicles on “driver error.” According to the Web site Just-Auto.com, a spokesperson for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has refuted the claims made in…
NATIONAL – According to an Associated Press (AP) investigation, Toyota has routinely engaged in questionable, evasive and deceptive legal tactics when sued, frequently claiming it does not have information it is required to turn over and sometimes even ignoring court orders to produce key documents. In a review of lawsuits filed around the country involving…
NATIONAL – According to a recent article published in USA Today, State Farm Insurance Companies will be seeking repayment from Toyota on unintended acceleration claims. “Armed with reports of accidents for which they’ve already paid claims, State Farm insurance has asked Toyota to repay them for any crashes related to unintended acceleration by its vehicles.” Other…
NATIONAL – The NHTSA will seek the maximum possible penalty from Toyota-over $16 million-in its faulty accelerator case generated significant coverage, with reports on all three network news broadcasts and heavy reporting in major papers, wire services, and news sites. ABC World News reported that the government “accused Toyota of, in essence, a cover up,…
NATIONAL – A Toyota executive told a congressional panel yesterday that fixing floor mats and sticking pedals on millions of recalled vehicles would “not totally” fix problems with dangerous unintended acceleration. He said that the automaker still hasn’t ruled out electronics as a potential cause of sudden acceleration. Since September 2009, Toyota has recalled millions…
NATIONAL – The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration today announced that Toyota has identified a vehicle-based remedy to fix a sudden acceleration safety issue involving floor mats trapping accelerator pedals in various Toyota and Lexus models. Toyota announced the recall of these vehicles in early October and said it would soon develop a vehicle-based remedy…
NATIONAL – According to The Detroit News (11/20, Tierney) reports, “After a highly publicized crash in August that killed four people when the driver lost control of a Lexus sedan, Toyota has come under intense pressure to reduce the risk of unintended acceleration. The Japanese automaker and U.S. safety regulators are discussing changes to the…
NATIONAL – Toyota is discussing additional fixes for sudden-acceleration problem. According to The Detroit Free Press (11/18, Gardner) reports, “Federal regulators and Toyota Motor Corp. are discussing whether the automaker needs to fix gas pedals or floor pans in millions of recalled vehicles instead of blaming floor mats, which the automaker had maintained was the source of…
NATIONAL – According to the Los Angeles Times, Toyota’s problems may extend beyond floor mats. “Auto safety experts believe there may be a bigger problem with Toyota vehicles than simply the floor mats.” They believe “that Toyota’s ignition, transmission and braking systems may make it difficult for drivers to combat sudden or unintended accelerations and…