Tennessee Woman Tells Congress About Her Toyota Troubles
A Sevierville, Tennessee woman is making national headlines after she went in front of an investigative panel of the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Tuesday to testify about the harrowing ordeal she underwent when her Lexus suddenly accelerated to speeds of over one hundred miles per hour. The woman tried everything she could think of (hitting the brakes, putting the car in neutral, reverse, etc.) to no avail before the vehicle miraculously slowed down, enabling her to avoid a car crash in Sevierville.
Incidents like this one have cause Toyota to millions of vehicles around the country. Toyota initially blamed the acceleration problems on sticking gas pedals and misplaced floor mats, but the House subcommittee is investigating whether or not the acceleration issues could be the result of an electronic malfunction that Toyota initially refused to acknowledge in instituting the recalls. Toyota does admit that the company may have grown too fast to enable them to maintain the proper focus on consumer safety but the company denies that there are any electronic problems of the sort alleged by the House subcommittee.
The outcome of this hearing may have significant ramifications in the area of Tennessee personal injury law and perhaps even on a national level. Any time a manufacturer places a defective product on the market, they can be held liable for the injuries and damages caused by that product in a products liability suit. In this case, Toyota is one of the most popular automotive brands in the entire world and has sold tens of millions of vehicles worldwide that may potentially be defective in some way. Add to that the fact that the product in question is indeed a vehicle, a product which, when defective, has the potential to seriously injure or even kill those trying to use it, and it becomes clear that Toyota is facing a serious liability as a result of the sudden acceleration of its vehicles. While the Tennessee woman in this instance thankfully escaped unharmed, some other drivers have not been so lucky. Those unlucky drivers may be entitled to recover for their damages and injuries if Toyota was indeed negligent in placing a defective product on the market.
Source: http://news.findlaw.com/ap/f/1310/02-23-2010/20100223032009_08.html
