LOS ANGELES, Calif. (Legal Newsline) – A California resident has brought a class action lawsuit against an automobile manufacturer, alleging the defendant failed to disclose a material and dangerous defect in the throttle control system of the cars they manufacture and sell.
Rodney Shively of California on behalf of himself and others similarly affected, filed suit against BMW of North America LLC and 100 as of yet unnamed John Does, on Nov. 13 in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, citing violations the Consumers Legal Remedies Act, the Unfair Competition Act, the False Advertising Law, the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act (for breach of implied warranty), and engaged in fraudulent concealment/nondisclosure in their failure to disclose the dangerous and defective conditions.
Shively claims to have leased a 2013 BMW 3-series 328i sedan on or about June 19, 2013, after having read the marketing materials from BMW regarding their vehicles performance, safety and quality. Thereafter, he states, he experienced multiple instances of the car not responding properly to acceleration and then belatedly unexpectedly accelerating, causing dangerous and unsafe driving conditions which he brought into the dealership multiple times for repairs. He further alleges that the defendant failed to disclose a faulty throttle control system installed in multiple models of their vehicles beginning in 2007 that, he claims, cause the cars to accelerate improperly or even without warning or the engine to unexpectedly lose power.
According to the complaint, plaintiff alleges that the defendant's failure to warn or otherwise disclose this defective and dangerous condition has harmed him and others similarly situated because the car does not behave as advertised or expected and has exposed drivers to dangerous situations. According to Shively's allegations, the defendant was aware of the defects from both consumer complaints made to the defendant and the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration, and defendant did not remedy the defect or advise customers. In fact, the plaintiff claims, there was an active effort on the part of the defendant to conceal and misrepresent the nature of the defect, and that the actions of the defendant are intended, in part, to conceal the defect until after the expiration of the car's warranty, thus shifting the cost of repairs to the consumer. Above all else, Shively alleges, is the very real safety concern present for drivers who cannot get their car to accelerate according to their wishes in that it fails to accelerate smoothly from a stop and/or accelerates unexpectedly, increasing the risk of an accident.
Shively has demanded a jury trial. He seeks compensatory and punitive damages as well as costs and alleges that the amount in dispute exceeds $5,000,000. Shively is represented by attorneys Gillian L. Wade and Allison Willett of Milstein Adelman LLP located in Santa Monica, California as well as attorneys Paul Marron and Gregory Scarlett of Marron Lawyers located in Long Beach, California.
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California case number 2:15-cv-08862-DPP-PLA