South Florida Injury Lawyers Blog

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Chevrolet Volt runs a serious risk of bursting into flames after a serious side-collision, as could potentially happen in a car accident in Stuart City. Recently, the NHTSA conducted a number of crash tests on the vehicle to determine how well it could protect the vehicle's occupants in the event of a side collision. During one of the tests, the car's battery was damaged and a coolant line cracked. Afterward, the car faced increased risks of a fire and eventually experienced one. The NHTSA is working with the Department of Energy (DOE), General Motors (GM) and the Department of Defense (DOD) to conduct thorough tests to determine what exactly happened, how to prevent these incidents and how to correct them.

The findings from the NHTSA have consumers worried. GM is helping by offering to buy the car back from owners. Our Stuart City defective vehicles lawyers understand that the chief executive of General Motors, Dan Akerson, said the company will happily purchase back the Chevy Volt from any concerned consumer. The NHTSA has not completed its investigation into the incident and an official recall has not been made, but GM is willing to ease the minds of consumers before a real problem happens.

"While the investigation is going on, we will do whatever it takes to allay concerns and keep our customers happy," said GM spokesman Greg Martin, "and if that includes repurchase, we will work individually with any customer."

Martin says that if GM's engineering team and NHTSA finds out what exactly is causing the fires then the motor-vehicle company will recall and retrofit those who already own the vehicle.

There have been nearly 10,000 sold so far. About 30 owners have already hit up the company for loaner vehicles until the investigation is complete. The details of the repurchase plan haven't been determined yet.

Jessica Caldwell, an auto analyst, says that GM is fortunate to have only sold about 10,000 of these vehicles. Results could have been much worse both financially and logistically if the Chevrolet Volt was a more popular vehicle. Experts don't expect many consumers will likely sell back the vehicle, considering it offers roughly 40 miles per gallon and that the fires happen weeks are a side collision.

"There are a couple of mistakes that have been made, but we all trying to do the right things," said Mark Reuss, GM's North America chief. "We are moving fast."

Consumers are urged to do their research before purchasing a new vehicle. Everyone should visit the Safecars.gov website to check out the latest safety recalls. You can also check out vehicles' safety ratings and other cool features. Be a smart consumer and do your homework to help prevent an accident from a defective vehicle.

Continue reading "Chevy Volt Safety Problem Could Lead to Injury in Stuart and Elsewhere" »

The Florida Legislature recently started the process of passing two bills that could put part of the blame on the victim in cases where accidents involve a defective vehicle, Automotive Discovery. Currently, Florida law deems the manufacturer to be completely responsible for serious or fatal injuries that result from a Palm Beach car accident caused by a defective product.

Our Fort Lauderdale personal injury lawyers urge you to stand against these bills as manufacturers need to take full responsibility when a defective automobile results in serious or fatal injury to a consumer.

“What they decided was the jury would not be able to hear all the evidence in these types of cases. And that’s wrong. That’s absolutely wrong,” said Sen. John Thrasher.

The bills come after the Florida Supreme Court sided with Ford Motor Co. and other automobile manufacturers when a trial neglected to allow jurors to consider the cause of an accident, according to The Palm Beach Post. This is was D’Amario vs. Ford Motor Co. case.

“We Floridians buy these vehicles and we are led to believe that they will be safe, and safe from inherent defects that will cause secondary issues that can cause even more damage, injuries to people,” said Sen. Maria Sachs, R-Delray Beach. “Those manufacturers should be held accountable whether it’s a tractor, a motor vehicle.”

The bill “changes Florida law to permit juries in a Florida courtroom to hear all of the facts leading up to a products liability case, thereby allowing that jury to apportion fault,” said Sen. Garrett Richter, R-Naples, sponsor of SB 142. “It’s an opportunity to put all the facts on the table.”

We urge you to contact your Florida House of Representative to express your opposition to these bills. Because of these new bills, it is now more important than ever to contact an experienced attorney if you've been involved in a car accident you believe may be the result of a defective product.

Continue reading "Florida measures would force victims to share fault in Fort Lauderdale accidents caused by vehicle defects" »

Last January, South Florida drivers who owned Toyotas were in a frenzy with all the recalls due to the accelerator pedal sticking because of the floor mat. According to the Sun Sentinel over 2 million vehicles were being recalled because of the defect in some of Toyotas best selling models like RAV 4, Camry, Corolla, Avalon, and Highlander to name a few.

Our Port St. Lucie personal injury attorneys are happy to report that Toyota has agreed to settle the case with the federal government by paying record fines. At the same time we continue to warn South Florida motorists of the potential dangers in driving defective vehicles.

Toyota Motor Corporation has agreed to pay over $32 million in civil penalties to the Treasury Department's General Fund for failure to recall two separate automobile defects in a timely manner. Toyota, one of the leaders in automobile manufacturing, has been under investigation by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for a "sticky pedal" defect as well as a faulty steering rod defect.

The first investigation for floor mats obstructing the accelerator pedal ended with a $16.375 million fine. Toyota recalled approximately 5 million vehicles in total for the malfunction of floor mats affecting the gas pedal forcing the car to accelerate undesirably. The company was found at fault for not recalling the defect within 5 days to the NHTSA, which, by law, is required.

The second investigation involved the cracking of steering rods, which caused a loss of steering. Effected vehicles were recalled in Japan but not in the United States. In time, consumers reported a defect in their steering wheel in the United States, and Toyota was accused of not recalling the vehicles soon enough. The outcome resulted in Toyota Motor Corp. being fined $16.050 million for failure to report the defect in a timely manner and withholding information from the NHTSA.

Recently purchased vehicles are always under warranty when something goes wrong but it is the obligation of the automobile manufacturer to warn you of defects so that you can have your car repaired in a timely manner. If you fear that your vehicle has been recalled for a defect, you can rely on Safer car as a valuable resource to get recall information as well as the safety ratings for your car.

Continue reading "Defective vehicles a risk in Port St. Lucie car accidents" »

Last week Toyota rolled out one of its largest recalls since the auto manufacturer started recalling cars and trucks in October 2009. Toyota is recalling 1.3 million Corolla and Matrix models in the U.S. and Canada that may contain a defective part in the engine control module responsible for regulating engine performance, wftv.com reports.

The recall includes an additional 161,754 Pontiac Vibe vehicles build as a joint venture between Toyota and General Motors. It is believed the defect may cause some of the module circuit boards to crack which could lead to an engine stall or prevent it from starting. Three accidents have been tentatively linked to the failed circuit board, though Toyota says the link has not been confirmed.

The Fort Lauderdale product liability attorneys at Freeman & Mallard understands the complexities of defective product cases. Our staff fights for the rights of consumers who have been injured or killed in all types of defective product cases, including defective vehicles, medical devices, child toys and other consumer goods. At Freeman & Mallard, our goal is to protect those who are not able to protect themselves. We will review your defective product case and if we can help, we will pay the cost of litigating your case. You will pay us nothing unless we win.

Toyota has now recalled almost 11 million vehicles in the last year, the Detroit News reports. The latest recall was issued on the heels of a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration review. The NHTSA investigation has been ongoing since November 2009.

For vehicles no longer under warranty, Toyota is reimbursing owners who have paid for repairs out-of-pocket and plans to notify all Toyota Corolla and Matrix drivers by mail of the recall starting mid-September.

Continue reading "Ongoing Toyota recalls highlights dangers of West Palm Beach car accidents caused by defective vehicles" »