Lack,Federal,Oversight,Partial law Lack of Federal Oversight Partially to Blame for Toyota Cris
When you work with an attorney, you will have no problem reducing the risks associated with getting your case in front of a judge and jury, or other formal court, when you need to. However, every case is different. It is important to work wi Bankruptcy is a situation, wherein an individual is termed as unable to discharge all the debts. When a person or a company is not able to pay off its creditors, it has an obligation to file a bankruptcy suit. In fact, a bankruptcy suit is a
Normal 0 false false false EN-US X-NONE X-NONE MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;mso-style-noshow:yes;mso-style-priority:99;mso-style-qformat:yes;mso-style-parent:"";mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;mso-para-margin:0in;mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;mso-pagination:widow-orphan;font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";}As Congress held hearings andmembers angrily wagged fingers at Toyota executives, some critics were pointingat the federal government as a key part of the problems enveloping the Japaneseauto giant.Vista, Calif. Rep. Darrell Issaco-chaired a hearing of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reformaddressing the recent recalls, the National Highway Traffic SafetyAdministrations handling of consumer complaints and oversight of automakers.Oversight lackingAs lawmakers probed Toyotasinternal efforts to quash U.S. government investigations and its efforts to fixreported problems with sudden acceleration and braking in its cars, they alsocast an increasingly skeptical eye toward the NHTSA.When the agency receives consumer complaintsabout defectsin vehicles, it opens an investigation in which its engineers conductevaluations of the reported flaws. One of the problems Transportation SecretaryRay LaHood has acknowledged is that only two of the agencys 125 engineers areelectronics engineers.Complaints about Toyota vehicleshave ranged from problems with floor mats, gas pedals that stick and brakesthat fail. As a result, there have been widely publicized reports of crashes,injuries and more than 30 deaths nationwide. The automaker has recalled overeight million vehicles so far.New safety laws loomingAgitated by consumer outrage overthe failure of the highly regarded corporate culture of Toyota and the federalgovernments own consumer watchdogs, lawmakers are threatening new legislationto prevent future safety scandals of this scope.One proposal would requireautomakers to install data recorders in every vehicle black boxes similar tothose in airplanes containing accident and performance data downloadable byregulators.Toyota says recent models containsuch devices, but admitted theres only a single machine in the entire countrycapable of reading the boxes, and that a company representative must be presentwhile the machine is operated. Another legislative proposal wouldrequire new cars to have brake override systems; software ensuring that anengines throttle goes to idle whenever the brakes are deployed.Congress will also considerempowering NHTSA with the authority to levy criminal penalties on automakersthat delay safety recalls. The agency can currently assess civil penalties ofup to $16.4 million, but it hasn't used this power since 2004.Have you been affected by Toyotasfailures?If you or a loved one has been hurtin a SanDiego car accident because of a defect in a Toyota vehicle or anothervehicle brand, contact a personal injury lawyer who can evaluate your case andhelp you use the law to protect yourself and your family.
Lack,Federal,Oversight,Partial