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CASES & INVESTIGATIONS |
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GENERAL INFORMATION |
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GM Pickup Trucks and Side Gas Tank Fires and
Explosions |
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| General Motors pickup
trucks produced from 1973 to 1987 were equipped
with fuel tanks mounted outside of the vehicle
frame, called side-saddle or saddlebag fuel tanks.
In numerous lawsuits filed by drivers seriously
injured or the families of loved ones who died,
it has been alleged that the GM trucks were defectively
manufactured because the fuel tanks have a dangerous
tendency to catch fire or explode during a side
collision. |
| In the federal court
litigation against GM, known as In re General
Motors Corp. Pick-Up Fuel Tank Products Liability
Litigation, MDL No. 961, Lieff Cabraser
served as court-appointed Co-Lead Counsel representing
a class of 4.7 million plaintiffs who
owned 1973-1987 GM C/K pickup trucks with allegedly
defective gas tanks. |
| The complaint alleged
GM breached its warranties and consumer protection
laws based on the reduction in the value of
their trucks due to the fuel tank design. |
| In addition, since
the early 1990’s, individual personal
injury lawsuits have been filed against GM
by owners of pickup trucks with side-saddle
fuel tanks who were injured or killed in side
collisions. Hundreds of persons have died in
collision-related fires in GM trucks produced
from 1973 to 1987. |
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| Lieff
Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP represents persons
injured in vehicle accidents. Click
here to submit your
case. |
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| Lieff Cabraser has participated
in over thirty-five $100 million-plus settlements & verdicts
since 1992. To read a summary, click
here. |
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| In 1993, Consumer Research magazine
reported: |
NHTSA (the
National Highway Transportation Safety Administration)
found that the fire-related side impact fatality
rate per million vehicle years was 2.4 times
as high in GM's full-size 1973-87 pickups during
1979-90 as it was in Ford pickups - 2.8 deaths
per million in GM pickups compared with 1.2 in
the Fords. The Fords have fuel tanks mounted
between the frame rails. Counting only the deaths
in which vehicle fire was the most harmful crash
event, NHTSA concluded "that there may be
five or six more burn fatalities associated with
damage to the side of these GM pickup trucks
in 1993." |
| Based on this, the agency
asked GM to recall the pickups voluntarily. |
| Injured drivers and
passengers, and the families of loved ones
who have died in crashes and fires involving
GM pickup trucks, may bring claims against
General Motors for manufacturing trucks with
an unreasonable risk of catching fire in an
accident or collision. |
| Damages sought have
included: |
- Wrongful death;
- Past and future physical pain and suffering,
mental anguish and physical impairment;
- Past and future medical, incidental and
hospital expenses;
- Past and future loss of earnings and
earning capacity; and
- Punitive damages.
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There
is no charge or obligation
for our
review of your case. |
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We
have a nationwide
team of experienced auto
defect and car accident
lawyers assigned
to our vehicle injury
cases. |
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We
have retained leading
national car crash
and auto defect experts. |
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We
have on staff a team
of
legal assistants, investigators
and nurses to assist
in the prosecution
of the claims of our
clients. |
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We
provide individual
attentive service.
Learn
more about our firm. |
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| Lieff Cabraser represents
persons who have been injured or killed in truck
and car crashes. Please click
here to contact a Lieff Cabraser attorney concerning
your case. We will promptly review your claim without
charge or obligation. |
| Alternatively,
you may call Lieff Cabraser toll-free at 1-866-313-1973
and ask to speak to partner Kathryn E. Barnett. |
| The GM trucks with that
have been alleged to have a likelihood of catching
fire or exploding during a side accident are as
follows: |
1973 through
1986 model year General Motors full-size pickup
truck or chassis cab models of the "C" or "K" series
which include the following models: Chevrolet
C10, C20, C30, K10, K20, K30 and GMC Truck C1500,
C2500, C3500, K1500, K2500 and K3500. |
| The settlement in the
federal court litigation also included the following
GM trucks: |
1987 through
1991 model year General Motors full-size pickup
truck or chassis cab models of the "R" or "V" series,
which include the following models: Chevrolet
R10, R20, R30, R2500, R3500, V10, V20, V30, V2500,
V3500 and GMC Truck R1500, R2500, R3500, V1500,
V2500 and V3500. |
| Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP, is a national law firm of over 50 lawyers with offices in San Francisco,
New York and Nashville. Our attorneys are recognized
for the successful prosecution of lawsuits involving deaths, personal injuries
and property damage due to defective products, including in the field of vehicle
safety. |
| In 2007, in the case
of Mraz
v. DaimlerChrysler, Lieff Cabraser
attorneys, with local co-counsel, obtained
the fourth largest verdict in California for
the year. At trial, plaintiffs showed that
a defective
transmission was responsible for making
a Dodge Dakota pickup shift into reverse and
run over Richard Mraz. |
| Currently, we are
prosecuting personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits involving cars, vans,
pickup trucks, SUVs, the Yamaha Rhino and other
vehicles. To learn more about the firm, click
here. |
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| Trademark Notice:
Vehicle Injuries.com is an electronic newsletter from Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP, a national personal injury attorney | lawyer law firm. |
| Lieff Cabraser is not
affiliated in any way with any trademark owner. The use of any trademarks on
this site is for product identification and information purposes only. |
| About Lieff Cabraser:
Drivers and passengers injured in auto crashes and pickup truck and SUV rollover
accidents, or families of loved ones who died, may be eligible to file lawsuits
against other drivers at fault or against the manufacturer of their vehicle if
the accident was due to a safety defect. Safety defects can include a high risk
of rolling
over, tire tread
separation, seat
belt failures and other defects. Learn
more... |
| We have offices in San
Francisco, New York and Nashville.
Our car crash accident lawyers and auto accident attorneys have represented
clients in personal injury, auto accident, SUV rollover and vehicle safety defect
lawsuits across America, including persons living in Alaska, Alabama, Arkansas,
Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii,
Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Maryland,
Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota,
Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma,
Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia,
Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Wyoming. |
| Disclaimer: The
hiring of an auto accident lawyer is an important decision. Please read our attorney
advertising disclaimer. |
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| Copyright © 2008 Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP |
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