— A GM airbag lawsuit won't continue as a nationwide class action after a federal judge ruled the plaintiffs lacked standing, but multiple state-based claims were given the green light to proceed.
The General Motors airbag lawsuit alleges multiple models were equipped with defective Takata airbags which contained the explosive chemical ammonium nitrate.
The chemical is used to create what should be a small explosion to deploy the airbags, but problems with the chemical and the metal airbag inflators have caused the recalls of millions of vehicles manufactured by numerous automakers.
In addition, deaths and injuries occurred when the metal airbag inflators blew apart and sent shrapnel into vehicle occupants.
The multidistrict litigation consolidates numerous lawsuits filed by GM owners who argue the automaker knew or should have known of the Takata inflator defect prior to installing the airbags in the vehicles. GM allegedly concealed the defects and failed to inform owners about the dangerous airbags.
The vehicle owners say they wouldn't have purchased the cars if GM would have warned customers about the vehicles. The lawsuit also alleges owners may not have paid what they did for the vehicles if GM would have admitted the cars were defective.
General Motors says the 40-count lawsuit is without merit, and the judge had previously dismissed a claim that GM violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act.
According to the judge, despite asserting a nationwide Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act claim, the plaintiffs assert breach of implied warranty claims under the laws of only 13 states.
This caused the judge to dismiss the nationwide claim because the plaintiffs lack standing to represent GM owners of states for which there are no breach of implied warranty claims.
In addition to dismissing the nationwide class action claim, the judge also dismissed the following claims:
- Statewide breach of implied warranty claims under the laws of Indiana and Kentucky.
- Statewide consumer protection claims under the laws of Florida, Indiana, Louisiana, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Vermont.
- Fraud claims governed under the laws of Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Tennessee and Vermont.
- Negligence claims under the laws of Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Tennessee and Vermont.
- Unjust enrichment claims governed under the laws of Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Tennessee and Vermont.
However, GM failed to convince the judge to dismiss the following claims:
- Certain statewide consumer protection and breach of implied warranty claims.
- Claims for fraud governed under the laws of Alabama, California, Georgia, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.
- Claims for negligence governed under the laws of Georgia, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.
- Claims for unjust enrichment governed under the laws of Alabama, California, Georgia, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.
The GM airbag lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, Miami Division: In Re: Takata Airbag Products Liability Litigation / Whitaker, et. al., v. General Motors LLC, et al.