Toyota has asked a United States judge to throw out the majority of its pending lawsuits on the grounds that the cases are based on anecdotal and circumstantial information. The automaker is currently facing over 300 lawsuits that vary from personal injury to economic loss, nearly all of which are tied in one way or another to the company’s rash of unintended acceleration issues. To date this year, Toyota has recalled eight million vehicles globally for varying reasons, including accelerator pedals that could become entrapped.

Some of the lawsuits have been bundled for pre-trial rulings. These consumer cases claim that the quality woes the recalled Toyota models face have driven down the value of those products substantially. Likewise, the company’s claims of quality, safety and reliability have been called into question. Toyota has responded by saying that any claims made in its advertisements were opinion and to be taken as such.

The combined lawsuits are being handled in Santa Ana, Californa, where Toyota asked the judge to dismiss the cases against the company.

-by Zach Bowman
[Source: Bloomberg]