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It started as an obscure court case in California. Two sisters rented an Enterprise Rent-a-Car in Santa Cruz in 2004 to go visit the coast. Four days later they were dead after their PT Cruiser rental car caught fire after a car crash, the result of a defect in the automobile. What was not known by the girls at the time was that Chrysler had recalled the PT Cruiser one month earlier because there was a fire danger with the vehicle when power steering fluid leaked on hot engine surfaces and ignited. Instead of turning in the cars under recall, Enterprise ignored the recall, renting the vehicle three times before it went to the sisters. The surviving family members brought suit against Enterprise and after six years, the company finally admitted in court it was responsible for the girl’s deaths and agreed to pay $15 million in damages to the parents.
This case impacts all rental cars by bringing to light a glaring loophole in federal law. Rental car companies are not required to fix recalled vehicles. In California, a lawmaker from Santa Cruz introduced a bill to stop rental companies from putting recalled and unrepaired cars back into commerce.
The rental car companies fought back. Then in July of 2011, Sen. Charles Schumer introduced a bill to ban unrecalled vehicles from being rented. The bill has support in Congress. Additionally it also stops the sale of rental cars to the public with uncorrected defects. Rental car companies reportedly sold 1.4 million vehicles by auction and wholesalers to the public last year. The rental car industry is pushing back and if anything, wants recalled cars to be fixed in two tiers with only the most serious defects dealt with immediately. NHTSA says all recalled items need to be addressed promptly.
What a great publicity opportunity it would be for one smart automobile rental company to get onboard with the bill as it is proposed and side with the parents of the dead sisters, encouraging all rental automobiles be brought in immediately for a fix if they are recalled. Wouldn’t most of the motoring public put their money behind the ethics of the smart company next time they need a rental car?
Source: http://www.fairwarning.org/2011/08/campaign-aimed-at-rental-car-industry-shifts-into-high-gear/
Two children and a woman were hurt when their Ford Explorer rolled on Interstate 95 just south of County Road 206 on Wednesday afternoon, August 3, according to the Florida Highway Patrol (FHP). Channel 4 reports the FHP has blamed the rollover on a separating tire in the vehicle which was traveling northbound at about 3:25 p.m. when the crash occurred. The 33-year-old woman was behind the wheel when the Explorer rolled over a couple of times in southern St. Johns County. Inside the car was an 8-month-old boy in a car seat and a 9-year-old girl, who was thrown from the car. There is no word on whether or not she was wearing a seat belt but generally when one is ejected from a vehicle they were not buckled in. The girl was flown to Shands Jacksonville in serious condition, while the boy was taken to Flagler Hospital with minor injuries. The injuries are said not to be life-threatening.
Our prayers are with this family for a speedy recovery from their injuries.
Ford Explorers were notorious or rolling over until the mid-2000 model years when stability control was added as mandatory equipment. In Florida, tires are known to wear quicker because of the heat. If a tire is purchased used, it is very likely that it should not be put on your vehicle. Any tire older than six years should not be used.
Injuries from being ejected from a vehicle are generally the most serious so our prayers go out to this little girl for a swift recovery. In order to decrease the number of ejections from vehicles, the U.S Department of Transportation (DOT) will begin phasing in a standard to prevent people from being partially or fully ejected through side windows during a rollover.
For passenger vehicles weighing less than 10,000 pounds, a passenger will be prevented from moving more than four inches past the side window. NHTSA believes the new standard will prevent 373 fatalities from rollover accident by passenger ejection every year.
If you or a loved one have been involved in a rollover crash or another car accident in Florida due to a defective auto part, contact the auto defect lawyers in Florida at Farah & Farah. We can conduct a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident in order to determine all of the at-fault parties and help you understand what legal options are available to you. Call our law offices today to get started with one of our attorneys.
Sources: http://www.news4jax.com/news/28756038/detail.html and http://staugustine.com/florida-news/2011-08-04/woman-2-children-hospitalized-after-tire-blowout-suv-flip-st-johns-county
A 25-year-old deputy with the Orange County Sheriff’s Department was involved in a two-vehicle crash that resulted in minor injuries on Thursday morning, April 7. Central Florida’s News 13 reports the deputy told Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) troopers at the scene that he was driving his marked 2008 Ford sheriff’s vehicle southbound on Orange Blossom Trail in Orlando responding to a 5 a.m. call. At the intersection with Landstreet Road, he says his brakes failed and his car traveled from the center lane, crossing into the northbound oncoming traffic where he struck another car with two people inside. The deputy and two others in the car suffered non-life threatening injuries and were taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center. Fortunately, everyone involved suffered only minor injuries.
Let’s all pray that everyone involved recovers quickly.
Both the Florida Highway Patrol and the Orange County Sheriff’s office will be conducting an investigation into the Florida car crash. The deputy could face some disciplinary action if it is determine he was speeding. However, the reported cause of this accident was the failure of the patrol car’s brakes. If that is the case, the auto manufacturer and/or those in charge of maintaining the fleet, if it is a third party, could be held responsible for the cost of the injuries and property damage connected with this crash.
The Florida car accident lawyers at the Farah & Farah law firm have been investigating auto crashes and defective products in Florida since 1979. If you suspect defective components of a car, truck, or motorcycle led to mechanical failure, under Florida law, you may have a product liability action against the manufacturer, designer, or distributor of that faulty product. We would be honored to discuss you concerns in a complimentary meeting.
A family of nine from Eustis was involved in a crash on Interstate 95 on Sunday, December 5 when control was apparently lost of the vehicle after a tire exploded on their 1999 Ford Expedition, according to a report in The St. Augustine Record. The Florida Highway Patrol reports that five family members died in the resulting crash that occurred around 11 p.m. in Flagler County, just south of the St. Johns County line as they were returning from a family gathering in North Carolina. The car accident also resulted in the hospitalization of four children, ranging in age from 5 to 11, who suffered non-life-threatening injuries.
The FHP reports that only two members of the family were wearing seat belts. Seat belts will not save you from injury or death in all collisions, depending on the speed and angle of the crash, but they will keep you secure in a rollover accident or a violent crash.
Tire Maintenance
We’ve reported on a number of tire blowouts recently that led to injuries and fatalities. The FHP has suggestions on how to prevent a tire blowout:
- Follow the tire pressure guidelines on the side of your tire or in your owner’s manual.
- Always follow the load limit of your vehicle.
- Avoid debris in the road and steer around it. Slow down!
- A visual inspection will tell you if a tire has a cut, slash, or is wearing unevenly.
In case your tire blows out or goes flat, there may be a loud noise as the rubber hits the wheel well. The FHP suggests you grip the wheel tightly and do NOT slam on your brakes but let the car slow as you work toward an exit or emergency lane while signaling to other drivers that you are pulling over.
The Florida car accident attorneys at Farah & Farah extend their condolences to the member of the family involved in this tragic accident. We will pray the hospitalized children recover soon.
A massive traffic tie-up on southbound Interstate-95 resulted from a crash Monday morning, October 11, that killed one man and injured five others from Fort Pierce, according to TCPalm.com. The single vehicle collision at 6:35 a.m. occurred in northern Palm Beach County just south of Indiantown Road.
The Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) reports that the driver of a 1999 Dodge Caravan, Jose J. Calixto-Aguilar, 48, lost control of the vehicle when the left rear tire tread separated. The van then hit a wall and rolled over. Ejected from the vehicle was passenger, Jose Aguiniga Gil, 38, who died following the crash. Gil was not wearing a seat belt.
Calixto-Aguilar and his four passengers all received serious or critical injuries. The driver was wearing his seat belt and two of the passengers were not.
Our condolences are extended to the friends and family of Mr. Gil.
Seat Belt Use
We know seat belts save lives and in Florida, drivers have topped the national average on the use of seat belts, according to the Florida Department of Transportation in a June 2010 report. Statewide, compliance is 87.4%, which exceeds the 2009 national seat belt use of 84%, according to the report. Seat belt use was nearly identical among drivers and passengers.
When Florida enacted its primary safety belt law, federal officials predicted it would save 124 lives a year and prevent 1,733 injuries.
The Florida auto product liability attorneys at Farah & Farah encourage everyone to buckle up in a vehicle.
It may be due to the hot roads in Florida this summer, but we seem to be reporting on quite a few blown tires. In Martin County, on Interstate 95, one vehicle landed on top of another after a crash Thursday, July 1 according to WPBF. It happened near mile marker 90 around 6:40 a.m. Heading northbound on I-95, Jordan Joseph, 34, driving a 1995 Honda sedan, was in the center lane while a 2002 Kia SUV was in the inside lane. That vehicle was driven by Nichole Cooler, 20, of Palm City, Florida.
The Florida Highway Patrol says that the Honda’s right rear tire blew. The vehicle rotated counter clockwise and the driver lost control sending the Honda into the path of the SUV.
Fortunately, Jordan and his passenger, both from Lake Worth, were taken to Jupiter Medical Center with minor injuries. Cooler also was hospitalized with minor injuries.
We are glad that everyone survived this accident.
Don’t take your tires for granted. Every time you drive, glance at the tires to make sure they are not flat. Part of your routine should be to check to see if the tires are still within spec. How do you do that? Once a month, use a penny and insert it into the tire tread. Noting Lincoln’s head, insert the penny and if the Lincoln head disappears, you are still in good standing. Check the owner’s manual to see what tire inflation pressure is recommended.
Regardless of the tread, tires do tend to fail more often in the Florida heat and due to age. The tread may appear fine, but a tire older than five years should be avoided because of internal breakdown with time.
Then there are Florida tire failures due to a defective product. Bridgestone and Firestone have both manufactured tires that turned out to be defective.
When a tire problem contributes to an auto accident, a Florida injury attorney and investigator must look at a few causes. Tires can be defective due to the manufacturing process that causes the tread to separate. When a tire de-treads, it can result in a single or multi-car accident and even lead to a rollover.
Often the driver is blamed for the accident, that’s why it is important to make sure you are not blamed when the accident may have been out of your control.
Say the words “auto recall” and the name Toyota might come to mind. This time it’s the Ford Motor Co.’s Fusion and the Mercury Milan that are under close scrutiny because of the potential for trapped accelerator pedals.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) indicates that upward of 249,000 cars from the 2010 model year may be recalled after three drivers complained about pedals wedged beneath an all-weather floor mat. There have been no injuries as a result. Ford says it is cooperating with the investigation which has not yet turned into a recall.
Toyota has had to recall about 5.4 million of its vehicles over the floor mat entrapment issue that many feel is actually a ruse to cover for glitches in its computer software that causes unintended acceleration. Toyota is sticking to the floor mat explanation and has redesigned the foot pedal in some models.
NHTSA is looking at 89 deaths over the last decade that may be attributed to runaway Toyotas, revising upward a previous estimate of 52 deaths suspected of being linked to the problem. The Boston Globe takes a look at what is suspected to be victims of suddenly accelerating Toyotas. Part of the delay in reporting these suspected cases is that law enforcement and the surviving families didn’t know what to look for until other cases came forward and Toyota issued its recall last year.
As a result of the Toyota debacle, Congress is considering giving the government more power to demand a recall instead of merely request one as the chain of command is established now.
In the case of the Ford Fusion and Mercury Milan, consumers are asked not to stack floor mats in any way. The all-weather mats, which are options, should only be installed after the standard mats are removed.
The Ford Fusion is selling very well and part of the resurgence of Ford. The best-selling car, the Fusion accounts for more than one-third of sales. The Mercury Milan also represents about one-third of its sales.
Florida auto product liability lawyers will continue to monitor vehicle recall news as new information is announced.
The Toyota Motor Company has long resisted turning over documents that class-action lawyers have been seeking to prove their cases for clients injured in auto accidents. A U.S. federal judge in California on Friday, May 28, decided that the giant automaker has 30 days to gather the pages and turn them over to the lawyers, according to a Reuters report. The documents relate to complaints of Toyota vehicles that race out of control, injuring or killing occupants.
It is foreboding for Toyota in that this is the first courtroom decision for Toyota in what promises to be scores of lawsuits, filed by individual consumers and class-actions that were consolidated in April.
In all, at least 125,000 pages were sought in civil lawsuits that could surpass $10 billion.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration believes upward of 89 deaths may be attributed to unintended acceleration of Toyotas.
Plaintiff’s charge that Toyota has made a defective auto product, has been negligent, has committed fraud, is guilty of wrongful death, and economic loss, among other claims. At least 230 federal lawsuits have been filed around the country along with hundreds of individual suits.
About 8 million Toyotas have been recalled following reports of runaway vehicles or sticking gas pedals. Initially the automaker repaired ill-filling floor mats that Toyota blamed for the unintended acceleration and problematic pedals. But in many cases, the vehicles have continued to have problems, even after the fix. Many experts inside and outside of government allege this is not a mechanical problem, but a computer glitch that has the electronics of the vehicle going haywire. Toyota seems to continually be in denial over that allegation.
The internal company documents may show whether others inside the company have suspected the same problem. The documents are expected to show that Toyota dismissed the possibility of computer failures without ever looking into the issue.
In a small concession to Toyota, Judge James Selna has given the company up to 60 days to produce documents in Japanese. And any company documents that reveal company secrets will be kept confidential under a protective order. The next hearing is set for June 23.
You hope this is information you never have to use. But what if you were driving your own Toyota or a rental car and it experienced sudden acceleration – what would you do?
As the wall of secrecy comes down on the 5 million vehicles recalled by Toyota and just how bad this problem might be, this is good information to have. If you are accelerating it is very scary, but doesn’t have to be tragic.
Auto Trends posted a Consumer Report of a video on its web site to see how to do this. Turning off the ignition might cause the power steering to lock up and you need to be able to steer in an emergency situation. Pumping the brakes can cause you to lose braking. Unfortunately, Toyota is providing little guidance on what to do in case they are caught behind the wheel of an accelerating vehicle, or even what to do with their questionable automobile.
ABC News and Consumer Reports find that your best emergency action is to slam on the brakes and shift the transmission into neutral.
Another factor is many of these cars have a power button and it is not obvious how to turn it off at all. You’d have to read the manual to find out that to turn off the car you hold down the button for three seconds. But here is what you do! Apply the brakes hard, then shift the car into neutral and you are safe. It can be difficult to find neutral so practice in a parking lot, just in case you ever have to use it. By the way, Consumer Reports tried applying the brakes in a Volkswagen Jetta. It has a brake override system that allows the brake to override the accelerator, even if you are applying both at the same time. Since the runaway Toyota vehicles do not come with a brake override system, best to practice the shifting into neutral and hope you never have to use it.
Product Liability Cases
Eventually, it may be determined that Toyota knew years ago about the potential for their cars to experience sudden acceleration, putting consumers at risk. In that case, the automaker could be held liable for a defective product. If you have experienced an accelerating Toyota, or encountered an auto defect causing injury, it is best to join forces with other people who are demanding that Toyota take this issue seriously and immediately. Many voices joining together become much more difficult for the world’s largest automaker to ignore.
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