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Judge Allows Cases Against Toyota to Continue

The past recalls that were related to acceleration problems with many Toyota models had prompted a series of class action lawsuits against the automaker. Toyota is fighting these claims, however, a federal judge has ruled that the suits should continue. 

The judge said that lawyers for the consumers cases provided sufficient evidence of why the cases should continue. However, there is no set dollar amount for each person involved in the class action suit to receive, it will depend upon the individual's situation. The judge is supposed to reach a ruling as to whether he will allow the cases to continue or retract them as Toyota wants by the 25th of November. 

The suits are claiming that Toyota drove down the value by allowing these recalls and malfunctions to occur. Around 10.2 million vehicles were recalled due to an acceleration problem in which the cars would begin accelerating without being prompted to by the driver. This led Toyota to find problems with the pedals themselves, the floor mats getting stuck in the pedal somehow causing it to speed up and numerous other problems. None of these cases are dealing with the brake recall issue that occurred around the same time. 

Since the plaintiffs are arguing that they have an economic loss on their hands with the Toyota's, the company is arguing that the owners were not out any money to fix the recalls, as the company handled all the expenses. Now that the cars are fixed, Toyota argues that the owners can still sell them for what they are worth. In essence, Toyota believes that there is no reason why they should pay them for something that they haven't lost. However, the plaintiff's may still have a strong case, as they can prove that the selling power of Toyota is not as good as it used to be. 

Toyota is not viewing this decision as a loss thus far. They see this as a way to get their message across to the public that the quality is no longer a question in their vehicles.