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US Indian wins case against Toyota
By siliconindia staff writer
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Friday, 15 August 2003, 19:30 IST
BALTIMORE: Toyota Motor Corporation has lost its effort to overturn a $16 million judgment that was won by a Bowie man who lost his legs in a car accident because his seat was fully reclined, according to a report published in a leading business daily in India.
Toyota, the report said, failed to convince Judge James P Salmon of the Court of Special Appeals that it wasn't responsible for Prashant Kumar's June 1997 injuries.
Paul D Bekman, a lawyer for Kumar, said on Monday the case was a big win for the consumer.
"This is the little guy bringing a claim against a mega-corporation and saying, 'You can make these products safer,'" he said.
At the May 2000 trial, Kumar's lawyers argued that the company was partially responsible for the injury because, other than a note in the owner's manual, there was no warning that reclining the seat would affect the seat belt's restraining ability.
Kumar was a passenger who was sleeping when the Toyota Tercel was hit head-on by a Cadillac Cimarron that had crossed the centre line on a New Jersey highway.
Kumar was flung forward by the impact, shattering both legs which were later amputated above the knees. The driver of the Toyota was not seriously injured.
The court upheld that it was unreasonable to have expected Kumar to read the owner's manual before riding as a passenger in the car and suggested putting a warning on the seat.
Bekman said just noting a safety precaution in the owner's manual isn't thorough enough.
"First of all, the owner doesn't read it; second of all, the passenger doesn't read it," he said.
The court also upheld Dr Joseph Burton's testimony, who supported Kumar's claim that the seat's angle caused the seat belt to be ineffective. Burton testified that if Kumar were sitting upright, he would not have sustained such serious leg injuries.
Toyota spokesman Xavier Dominicis said on Tuesday the company is disappointed with the ruling, especially the warnings decision.
"If all the warnings were placed inside the vehicle, frankly we'd overwhelm the occupants," Dominicis said. "We stand behind safe and practical warnings in the owner's manual."
He said Toyota is responsible for paying 30 per cent of the court's reward and had not decided if it will take the case to a higher court.
A Baltimore jury had originally awarded Kumar $59.7 million, but the following December, the trial judge reduced the amount to $16 million. Some New Jersey laws were applied in the case. (Source: ET)