The Houston Chronicle newspaper has reported on a story about a man accused of murdering his wife. The man, Pedro Cueva-Ferman, blames the accident on a stuck accelerator and faultu brakes of his Lexus automobile. The 2010 Toyota Lexus GX 460 luxury SUV sales were halted amid safety issue.

Cueva-Ferman told police that his 1990 Lexus sedan’s accelerator pedal had become stuck and his brakes had failed as he struggled to stop the car while leaving a southwest Houston grocery parking lot.

The oldest model Toyota we found on the recall list is the 2005-2010 Avalon. According to police quoted in the story, nothing mechanically faulty was found with the suspects car. The 2010 Toyota Lexus GX 460 was recalled for handling issues related to its computer controlled assisted braking. Suspicions arose in this case when Mr. Cueva-Ferman didn’t inquire with police about the condition of his wife. Further investigation showed he had airline flights booked to El Salvador for himself and his toddler son following the accident. We are Georgia car accident lawyers who specialize in Georgia personal injury law. Although this case is criminal in nature it does touch on other subjects we’ve discussed here on this blog, including the Toyota recall. Mr. Cueva-Ferman and his son were taken to the hospital and treated for their minor injuries.

According to Georgia personal injury law:
§ 33-24-56.1. Reimbursement of medical expense or disability benefit providers in personal injury cases; subrogation prohibited; notice
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) “Benefit provider” means any insurer, health maintenance organization, health benefit plan, preferred provider organization, employee benefit plan, or other entity which provides for payment or reimbursement of health care expenses, health care services, disability payments, lost wage payments, or any other benefits under a policy of insurance or contract with an individual or group.
(2) “Injured party” means a person who alleges that he or she has been injured by the acts or omissions of a third party and who has received benefits from a benefit provider. This term also includes the personal representative of the estate of such person.
(b) In the event of recovery for personal injury from a third party by or on behalf of a person for whom any benefit provider has paid medical expenses or disability benefits, the benefit provider for the person injured may require reimbursement from the injured party of benefits it has paid on account of the injury, up to the amount allocated to those categories of damages in the settlement documents or judgment, if:
(1) The amount of the recovery exceeds the sum of all economic and noneconomic losses incurred as a result of the injury, exclusive of losses for which reimbursement may be sought under this Code section; and
(2) The amount of the reimbursement claim is reduced by the pro rata amount of the attorney’s fees and expenses of litigation incurred by the injured party in bringing the claim.

If you or someone you know is injured or killed in an automobile accident call our office today so we may further discuss your legal rights.

Continue Reading

Recent criticism leveled at the 2010 Lexus GX 460 has to do with the electronic steering correction control commonly referred to as Electronic Steering Control (ESC). Designed to help maintain control of a high riding SUV, this Consumer Reports test showed it didn’t activate until it was too late.

Since Consumer Reports gave the 2010 Lexus GX 460 SUV a Don’t Buy: Safety Risk designation because of a problem we experienced during one of our standard emergency-handling tests, we have seen many comments on our blog, as well as on others. To address the most common questions raised, our automotive engineers have put together the following answers, further explaining the test where the GX 460 slid out almost sideways before the electronic stability control system was able to regain control of the vehicle.

Rollover issues are nothing new to SUV’s, Critics have pointed to this glaring safety issue with these vehicles for years. The ESC is designed to help compensate for the high center of gravity design. Wikipedia discusses the issue further below.

A high center of gravity makes a vehicle more prone to rollover accidents than lower vehicles, especially if the vehicle leaves the road or in emergency maneuvers. Figures from the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that most passenger cars have about a 10% chance of rollover while SUVs have between 14% and 23% (varying from a low of 14% for the AWD Ford Edge to a high of 23% for the FWD Ford Escape). Many modern SUVs are equipped with electronic stability control (ESC) to prevent rollovers on flat surfaces, but 95% of rollovers are “tripped” – meaning the vehicle strikes something low, such as a curb or shallow ditch, causing it to tip over.[6]

According to NHTSA data, SUV’s and pickups are at a disadvantage in single-vehicle accidents (such as when the driver falls asleep, or loses control swerving around a deer), which comprise 43% of fatal accidents, with more than double the chance of rolling over. This risk relates closely to overall US motor vehicle fatality data, showing that SUVs and pickups generally have a higher fatality rate than cars of the same manufacturer.[7]

Consumer Reports Blog answers two common questions about the testing that was performed on the 2010 Lexus GX 460.

What does this test illustrate?
This particular aspect of the test simulates the reaction of a vehicle if a driver enters a sweeping turn, such as an off-ramp, and lifts off the throttle to negotiate the corner. We look for a vehicle to have benign handling characteristics in this test, remaining predictable and controllable through the turn.

Shouldn’t drivers be responsible for driving, rather than depend on vehicle electronics to protect them?
Even if the driver obeys the posted limits, that they may need to quickly slow down in a corner due to an obstacle in the road or a traffic backup. Our tests have shown that even vehicles without the protection of vehicle electronics like stability control don’t exhibit the oversteer behavior that the GX did. Finally, many drivers lack the training to counter unexpected oversteer, and properly-calibrated stability control can still do that faster and more effectively than even a trained driver.

If you suspect you have been injured in a car accident related to the Toyota manufacturing recall, please contact our office with your Georgia personal injury law questions. We are your Georgia car accident lawyers.

Continue Reading