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Takata Asks Judge to Suspend Airbag Lawsuits Against Carmakers
Bankrupt Takata Corp. is hoping for a federal court ruling today that would suspend hundreds of lawsuits filed against carmakers whose owners were injured by the company’s exploding airbag inflators.
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Bankrupt Takata Corp. is hoping for a federal court ruling today that would suspend hundreds of lawsuits filed against carmakers whose owners were injured by the company’s exploding airbag inflators.
The bankruptcy filings in June for Takata and U.S. affiliate TK Holdings Inc. automatically suspended similar lawsuits against the supplier. Now the company wants to extend the same protection to carmakers until it can complete a $1.6 billion asset sale to U.S.-based Key Safety Systems Inc., Reuters reports.
Takata contends that a suspension would hasten the sale and thereby ensure that production of replacement inflators continues without interruption. Plaintiffs’ attorney say the move is an abuse of bankruptcy law that will prolong the pain and suffering of victims.
The defective Takata inflators have been blamed for 18 deaths and some 180 injuries worldwide. Takata and 19 carmakers are recalling more than 100 million of the devices. The flawed inflators can deteriorate over time and then misfire when triggered by a crash. The resulting explosion blasts metal shards into the passenger compartment.
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