Mexican Media Brands
Toyota to Pay $1.6 Billion to Acceleration Case
A federal judge in Santa Ana, Calif., has given final approval to Toyota Motor Corp.'s $1.6 billion settlement of economic claims related to its 2009-2010 sudden-acceleration recalls.
#economics
Share
A federal judge in Santa Ana, Calif., has given final approval to Toyota Motor Corp.'s $1.6 billion settlement of economic claims related to its 2009-2010 sudden-acceleration recalls.
The company reached the accord in December to resolve a class-action lawsuit brought by owners of Toyota, Lexus and Scion owners who claimed that the safety campaigns hurt the resale value of their vehicles. Toyota recalled more than 10 million cars and trucks worldwide to fix a pair of mechanical defects it said could cause unintended acceleration: loose floor mats and sticky accelerator pedals.
The company said at that time that it would take a $1.1 billion one-time charge to cover the expense of the settlement.
That agreement includes $757 million in cash: $227 million for attorneys' fees and $530 million for former owners who lost money on the sale of their vehicles between September 2009 and the end of 2010. The court estimates those consumers will receive between $125 and $10,000 each.
The remaining $875 million of the settlement for "non-monetary benefits" covers programs for auto safety research and Toyota's costs to retrofit brake override systems on about 4.8 million vehicles.
The company still faces state and federal lawsuits alleging wrongful death or personal injury caused by unintended acceleration in its vehicles. Toyota has settled some of those claims.
The first wrongful death trial is scheduled to begin this month in state court in Los Angeles. It involves a woman whose Toyota Camry crashed into a tree at high speed in 2009.
RELATED CONTENT
-
China and U.S. OEMs
When Ford announced its 3rd quarter earning on October 24, the official announcement said, in part, “Company revenue was up 3 percent year over year, with net income and company adjusted EBIT both down year over year, primarily driven by continued challenges in China.” The previous day, perhaps as a preemptive move to answer the question “If things are going poorly in China, what are you doing about it?, Ford announced that it was establishing Ford China as a stand-alone business unit.
-
On Urban Transport, the Jeep Grand Wagoneer, Lamborghini and more
Why electric pods may be the future of urban transport, the amazing Jeep Grand Wagoneer, Lamborghini is a green pioneer, LMC on capacity utilization, an aluminum study gives the nod to. . .aluminum, and why McLaren is working with TUMI.
-
Inside Ford
On this edition of “Autoline After Hours” Joann Muller, Detroit bureau chief for Forbes, provides insights into what she’s learned about Ford, insights that are amplified on the show by our other panelists, Stephanie Brinley, principal analyst at IHS Markit who specializes in the auto industry, and Todd Lassa, Detroit Bureau Chief for Automobile.