Toyota was in the news a lot a few years back for throttle issues with a number of vehicles specially centering around the electronic throttle control system or ETCS-i. In an effort to make it right, it provided consumers who have bought those possibly defective vehicles with a new Brake Override System. This upgrade was done for free.
There were some vehicles that were not able to use the BOS. In those cases, Toyota offered to provide consumers with a cash payout.
Furthermore, the company enhanced their existing Customer Support Warranty Program. They extended it by at least three years for people with these vehicles, saying it would pay for any and all repairs that were related to the ETCS-i. If adjustments to related components were needed, those were covered under the new warranty, as well.
Finally, Toyota provided $600,000 for four scholarships to engineering schools in Canada. This was their way of giving back after the problems their vehicles had caused.
It is worth noting that they are not doing this instead of addressing the wrongful death claims and personal injury claims that were being made; this is done on top of that, and it does not impact those cases in any way. The claims were being made because the cars were said to experience “unintended acceleration,” which could lead to very serious accidents.
It’s critical that people in Canada who have driven the Toyota vehicles in question, with the ETCS-i system, know what legal options they have. As shown, there are ways to collect compensation or free repairs, even for those who have not been involved in accidents.
Source: Rochon Genova, “Canada-Wide Settlement Reached in Toyota Economic Loss Class Action,” accessed July 29, 2016
