Toyota Resisted Safety Findings in 2007 According to Reports

The Washington Post and Seattle Times report that Toyota Motors lobbyists claimed that they had saved the company $100 million by fending off a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) investigation into sudden acceleration issues in 2007. Not surprisingly, Toyota officials have dismissed this claim as an idle boast.

According to Peter Whoriskey in his Washington Post article, a closer look at the 2007 investigation, revealed in agency records and internal Toyota e-mails, showed that after federal investigators at the time diagnosed a number of potential dangers in Toyota cars and trucks, the automaker resisted the findings and in the end escaped a broad recall that could have cost millions of dollars.

Whoriskey reports that in 2007 NHTSA investigators told Toyota that the design of its gas pedals or floor pans could allow floor mats to entrap the accelerator. They saw a problem in Camrys, Priuses, Avalons and Lexus ES350s. Moreover, they believed any type of floor mat could pose a danger. But Toyota, which had developed a "game plan" for handling the inquiry, ignored NHTSA's findings and agreed only to a minor recall of a single type of floor mat.

What is more disturbing, however, is that the NHTSA, which has the authority to order a recall, did not push for more.  With the recalls of millions of Toyotas in recent weeks, the NHTSA has been faulted by critics for failing to wield its enforcement power and opting instead to cajole automakers to make cars safe.

While Toyota declined to answer questions this week about its lobbyists' efforts in 2007 to limit the scope of the recall, the NHTSA portrayed Toyota as unyielding during those discussions. The agency also claimed that while its engineers may have concluded that the Toyota pedal and floor-pan design could pose a danger, that alone was not enough to force a recall.

Whoriskey's full article can be found in the Washington Post and the Seattle Times.

Meanwhile a federal panel of judges will decide the fate of whether over a hundred class action cases and individual lawsuits that have been filed will be consolidated into one larger case for discovery and management purposes. The hearing is scheduled for March 25 in San Diego, California. We will be sure to be reporting updates on the federal panel's decision and other important news regarding any Massachusetts class action case that may be filed.

If you have been affected by the Toyota recall, you may have the grounds for a class action lawsuit. The Massachusetts personal injury attorneys at Phillips & Garcia will fight for your rights in your class action lawsuit. We are committed to protecting your best interests and helping you collect the damages you need and deserve to move on with your life. Contact Phillips & Garcia today to schedule your FREE legal consultation - (877) 892-5620.