Legal news for product liability attorneys. Two people file a lawsuit against Toyota for sudden accelerations.
Product liability lawyers alert- A lawsuit claims defective electronic throttle systems cause sudden acceleration in Toyota vehicles.
Los Angeles, CA—A lawsuit filed by two Los Angeles County residents alleges Toyota and Lexus motor vehicles manufactured since 2001 can suddenly accelerate due to defective electronic throttle systems. The plaintiffs, Seong Bae Choi and Chris Chan Park, filed the lawsuit on Thursday, November 5, 2009 in the River Side County Superior Court, as reported by the Los Angeles Times.
The class-action seeking lawsuit claims the electronic throttle systems installed in the Toyota and Lexus vehicles can cause sudden acceleration, which can affect “hundreds and thousands” of drivers and passengers. The lawsuit is the latest of several other similar lawsuits that were filed after the automaker recalled nearly 3.8 million vehicles.
Toyota believed the problem arose from improperly installed floor mats that would cause the accelerator pedal to get caught on the floor mat. Vehicle owners have since been notified to remove their floor mats until a resolution is found. Toyota adamantly stands behind the theory that the floor mats have caused the sudden acceleration, and that no other system installed on the vehicles could cause the sudden acceleration. Federal highway safety investigators believe otherwise; they issued a statement claiming that the seven recalled models do have an “underlying defect” that causes the abrupt acceleration. If the lawsuit does reach class-action status, it will exempt people who were injured or killed by the “underlying defect”, because those cases are handled individually.
The recalled Toyota and Lexus models: 2007-2010 Camry, 2004-2009 Prius, 2005-2010 Avalon, 2005-2020 Tacoma, 2007-2010 Tundra, 2007-2010 Lexus ES 350, 2006-2010 Lexus IS 250, and the IS 350.
Legal News Reporter: Nicole Howley-Legal news for product liability lawyers.
