Plaintiffs' lawyers expect more claims against Toyota

By Correy Stephenson The Daily Record Newswire As Toyota's woes mount, with another multi-million vehicle recall and the suspension of sales and production of certain types of vehicles, plaintiffs' lawyers are predicting more lawsuits. Last October, Toyota issued a recall of approximately 4.2 million cars because removable floor mats were jamming the accelerators, the company said. The move caused plaintiffs' lawyers to begin investigating the issue, which led to a handful of individual suits and a national class action filed in November. A second recall earlier this month - this one covering roughly 2.2 million vehicles - cited gas pedals that stick, causing vehicles to accelerate out of control. But the recall was quickly followed by a halt on production and sales of certain cars. Sean Kane, head of Safety Research and Strategies in Rehoboth, Mass., charged that Toyota is trying to simplify a complex problem. "There are multiple years, makes, models involved and the unintended acceleration is occurring different ways," he said. "There are very likely multiple root causes" of the unintended acceleration problem, he said. "We are going to be hearing a lot more from Toyota over the coming year." Donald Slavik, an engineer and attorney at Habush, Habush & Rottier in Milwaukee, Wis., agreed. "I suspect that Toyota still has not gotten to the root cause," he said. Floormats, sticky pedals and more? In October 2009 Toyota issued a recall for approximately 4.2 million Toyota and Lexus vehicles "to reduce the risk of pedal entrapment by incorrect or out of place accessory floor mats," the company said in a statement. At the time, plaintiffs' lawyers expressed skepticism that the company had determined the root of the problem - predictions that rang true earlier this month. On Jan. 21, Toyota recalled roughly 2.3 million vehicles "to correct sticking accelerator pedals" on several models and years, including 2007-2010 Camrys, the 2010 Highlander and Avalons manufactured from 2005-2010. In its latest recall notice, Toyota described the problem as "rare" and said it was a separate matter from the ongoing recall involving the floor mat pedal entrapment issue. The company said about 1.7 million vehicles are subject to both recall actions. Days later, Toyota announced a stop on production and sales of all cars that were subject to the new recall - a move that was not surprising given federal law, said R. Graham Esdale, Jr., a partner at Beasley Allen in Montgomery, Ala. "There is a federal regulation that makes it against the law to sell and manufacture defective vehicles," he explained. By announcing a recall, Toyota was effectively admitting that the vehicles were defective; continuing to sell the cars was therefore illegal, Esdale said. Esdale began digging into the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration database while investigating an unintended acceleration case. He discovered "an abnormally high number of complaints related to unintended acceleration," which was not immediately apparent because NHTSA had put the incidents in different categories. "Could floormats have caused a few of these accidents? Possibly," said Esdale. "But it was evident that floor mats alone were not the problem." The accelerator systems in Toyota Camrys and other lines are purely electronic, and not mechanical, Esdale explained, making them subject to problems like malfunction and electronic interference. Individual suits, class action filed A handful of individual lawsuits have already been filed against Toyota, as well as a national class action. In November 2009, the Redlands, Calif.-based law firm McCune Wright filed a putative class action against Toyota on behalf of California vehicle owners who had experienced incidents of sudden acceleration. The firm represents Seong Bae Choi and Chris Chan Park, who both experienced multiple instances of sudden unintended acceleration in their 2004 Camry and 2008 FJ Cruiser. Esdale filed his unintended acceleration suit on behalf of Jean Bookout, an Oklahoma woman who was seriously injured when her 2005 Camry sped out of control in 2007. Bookout and a friend were on the interstate driving home after lunch when the car suddenly accelerated, Esdale said. Bookout could now slow the car and pulled off the interstate before engaging the emergency brake, leaving 100 feet of skid marks before crashing into an embankment. Esdale said Bookout spent three months in the hospital with severe injuries to her back and neck. Her passenger, Barbara Schwarz, died from internal injuries after the crash. Esdale is currently investigating four other cases and said he has gotten many calls from vehicle owners who have experienced unintended acceleration. Slavik has also filed one case based on unintended acceleration and plans to file another one after he finishes the investigation. He has gotten many calls for "non-injury accidents where a driver hit a wall while parking or someone's brakes were on fired but [they] managed to stop the car," he said. But because of the cost of prosecuting these cases, Slavik is limiting his representation to plaintiffs with severe injuries. Esdale believes more suits will be filed as the general public becomes aware of the problem. Many accidents were probably incorrectly blamed on driver error, he said. "We will see additional lawsuits from past events," Kane agreed. Published: Wed, Mar 10, 2010

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