Family of Elgin Crash Victim Sues Toyota

February 10, 2011 - Despite assurances from the U.S. Department of Transportation that there was no electronic cause for the unintended accelerations in Toyota vehicles last year, the family of a crash victim still believes that Toyota is responsible for their family member's death.

According to a report at ABC 7 Chicago, the family of an 87-year-old Elgin man is suing Toyota for producing a defective vehicle that was involved in a May 2010 car accident.

The 87-year-old man was exiting a parking space in an Elgin shopping center when his car lurched forward suddenly and crashed into a building. The man, who was driving a 2006 Toyota Corolla, died shortly after the Elgin car accident. The crash was caught on the shopping center's surveillance camera, and the tape shows the vehicle's sudden and quick acceleration. The family argues that the victim, who worked as a truck driver for years, would not have accidentally hit the gas pedal instead of the brakes. According to the family's lawyer, they are suing Toyota for unspecified damages.

Toyota claims that the unintended acceleration problems it faced last year were caused by physical problems, including improperly installed floor mats and sticky gas pedals. The Department of Transportation's investigation appears to back up that claim.