By: Leading Toyota Recall Lawyer (For a Detailed Case Evaluation Related To Your Toyota Accident Call 800-300-0001)
Toyota has certainly come under fire over the last six months for numerous safety related defects that have been found in its vehicles. To date, it has announced recalls covering close to 8 million vehicles. Investigations have been underway across the world to try and determine when Toyota became aware of the various safety defects and what they did about it when they were made aware. Toyota officials are scheduled to testify in front of members of Congress on the 24th of February to answer to those, and may other, questions. In the meantime, the Department of Transportation as well as the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee issued demands for internal documents of the giant automaker earlier this month. According to documents that have been produced to date, it appears as if Toyota may have been putting profits ahead of safety.
Toyota announced at an internal presentation as far back as July of 2009 that it had saved the company $100 million dollars or more by negotiating an equipment recall of the floor mats involved in 55,000 of the Toyota Camry and Lexus ES350’s back in September of 2007. These are just a small fraction of the almost 4 million vehicles that were eventually recalled for the floor mat problem. If Toyota put profits before safety by pushing regulators to narrow the scope of a recall then this is certainly not the end of their problems with Congress. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) launched an investigation into the floor mat issue as far back as March of 2007. At that time, Toyota told the NHTSA that there was “no possibility of the pedal interfering with the floor mat if it is placed properly and secured”. The government, however, had received numerous complaints from Toyota and Lexus owners about the sudden acceleration with many of those complaints involving accidents. So why did the initial recall back in September of 2007 only involve 55,000 vehicles?
This and many other questions are not going to go away for the automaker giant. For those that have been involved in an accident as a result of one of the safety defects, the recalls came too late. Unfortunately, all the investigations and inquiries won’t turn back the clock. If you are one of those people that were involved in an accident with a vehicle that was ultimately recalled, then you may be entitled to compensation for the losses that you have suffered as a result of the accident. If a manufacturer produces a defective product, then they can be held accountable under the product liability and personal injury laws of the State of California. If Toyota knew about these safety defects and did nothing, then they will be responsible for any injuries those defects have caused. Seek the advice and counsel of an experienced California product liability and personal injury lawyer immediately. The law firm of Ledger & Associates has been fighting for accident victims in California for twelve years. Call them at 1-800-300-0001 or contact them online at www.ledgerlaw.com for an initial consultation.
