TOYOTA (dpa-AFX) - Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP said Friday that a U.S. District Judge granted preliminary approval to a settlement valued at more than $1 billion between Toyota Motor Corp. (TM) and an estimated 19 million current and former Toyota owners who claim their vehicles contain defects causing sudden, unintended acceleration.
The case was filed in 2010 after drivers across the country reported that Toyota vehicles suddenly and unintentionally accelerated out of their control. Toyota has long maintained that the vehicles were free from electronic flaws causing the acceleration.
With preliminary approval now granted, current and former Toyota owners included in the settlement will receive information about the settlement through notices expected to be mailed in early March.
As per the terms of the proposed settlement, Toyota will install a brake-override system in vehicles subject to floor mat entrapment recalls, provide a fund of $250 million for former Toyota owners who sold their cars between September 1, 2009, and December 31, 2010, provide an additional $250 million for current Toyota owners whose vehicles are not eligible for a brake-override system, and provide a customer care plan for all 16 million current owners that will warranty certain parts allegedly tied to unintended acceleration.
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