Toyota faces class action in Australia

Toyota and Lexus have been named in an Australian class action in the Supreme Court of NSW by legal firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart and Sullivan this month.

The class action alleges that Toyota and Lexus are in breach of their "obligations to consumers under the Australian Consumer Law (ACL)," according to the global law firm.

About 2.5 million vehicles sold in Australia since 2009 have been recalled due to deadly Takata airbags, which are believed to have claimed one life so far in Australia and killed 18 globally, but only about 40 per cent have been rectified.

Police have blamed the death of a Sydney man driving a Honda CR-V in July 2017 on the faulty Takata airbags.

Overall, more than 50 million cars worldwide have been recalled to have their airbags replaced. Over 180 injuries have been documented thus far from the faulty airbags, which have cost Takata billions in compensation and led it to file for bankruptcy.

In a press release issued last week, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart and Sullivan fingered Toyota, Honda, Mazda, BMW, Subaru, Audi, Volkswagen and other brands featuring the Takata airbags as likely to be rolled into the class action.

The class action filed in the NSW Supreme Court is being bank-rolled by Regency Funding, a US-based litigation funder. According to the law firm, hundreds of Toyota owners are already signed up to take part in the class action.

Quinn Emanuel Urquhart and Sullivan partner Damian Scattini said: "Under the ACL, goods need to be safe. This class action will allow Australians whose vehicles are fitted with the potentially deadly Takata airbag to seek either a safe replacement airbag or refund," Scattini said.

Louise Haselhurst, the lead plaintiff in the class action, said: "Toyota has put my family's life at risk, along with millions of other Australians who are driving cars fitted with a ticking time bomb.

“Something needs to be done urgently by car manufacturers before more lives are needlessly lost."

Owners of affected vehicles can register at AirbagRecall.com.au.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission is also investigating the situation and the time it takes for replacement of faulty airbags, some of which have been replaced with similarly suspect airbags.

Honda is the brand most exposed to the Takata airbag debacle in Australia, where it has replaced the vast majority of about 650,000 airbag inflators. It was hampered with initial availability of parts and continues to convince many owners to act on its recall notices.

Toyota said last month it had resorted to purchasing parts from wrecked cars in a bid to fix faulty Takata airbags.

Its public affairs manager Aleks Krajcer told motoring.com.au he couldn't comment on the class action, which will eventually go before the courts. However, he did say that customer safety was paramount for the Japanese car giant.

"Toyota takes the safety of its customers very seriously and we want to rectify the affected vehicles as soon as possible," he said.

"We want to raise awareness about the issue to ensure owners know all the avenues available to resolve the issue."

"We are working to rectify vehicles impacted by the Takata recall as quickly as possible in cooperation with the ACCC, ministers and other government bodies.

"Toyota encourages all affected vehicle owners to check the status of their vehicle on Toyota's VIN checker located at Recalls.toyota.com.au, make contact with their closest Toyota dealer immediately, or contact our Guest Experience Centre on 1800 869 682."

As Volkswagen, Audi and Skoda prepare for a local class action over the German giant’s dieselgate emission scandal, and Ford Australia has had its own issues with the Powershift class action, car-makers are increasingly finding themselves in the legal firing line for products that do not function as advertised.