Tennessee has joined 29 other states in announcing a $29 million agreement with Toyota Motor Corporation over allegations the company concealed safety issues related to unintended acceleration. 

The agreement was filed this week in Knox County Chancery Court and is pending approval.
 
Tennessee will receive approximately $700,000 as part of the agreement to resolve consumer protection claims. 

The agreement was filed in conjunction with the Consumer Affairs Division of the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance. 

Toyota has also agreed to provide improved communication with consumers if other potential safety concerns arise. Specifically, Toyota will be restricted from advertising the safety of vehicles without sound engineering data to back such safety claims.   
 
“We hope that this agreement will benefit consumers through Toyota’s commitment to improve internal communications and timely public notifications regarding any future safety concerns with the company’s products,” Attorney General Cooper said.
 
In a complaint filed Thursday along with the agreement, the states allege Toyota engaged in unfair and deceptive practices when it failed to timely disclose known safety defects with accelerator pedals.

The investigating state attorneys general determined poor communication between Toyota’s nerve center in Japan and Toyota’s United States holdings was partially responsible for its failure to timely report known safety issues. The agreement emphasizes changes in the corporate culture and corporate chain of command to enhance Toyota’s responsiveness to regulatory agencies in the United States.
 
In addition, the agreement provides that Toyota is prohibited from reselling a vehicle it reacquired with alleged safety defects without informing the purchaser and certifying that the reacquired vehicle has been fixed, as well as misrepresenting the purpose of an inspection or repair when directing consumers to bring their vehicles to a dealer for inspection or repair.

The company is required to exclude from the Toyota Certified Used Vehicles or Lexus Certified Pre-Owned Vehicles categories any vehicle acquired through lemon law proceedings or voluntarily repurchased to ensure customer satisfaction.

And for the next year, Toyota will be required to consider consumer requests for reasonable and provable out-of-pocket expenses to reimburse consumers whose vehicles were part of its floor mat entrapment or sticky pedal recalls and safety campaigns. The reimbursement may be for certain expenses incurred due to the recall such as towing costs and rental car costs.
 
Gary Cordell, director of the Consumer Affairs Division, is encouraging anyone who has a complaint with Toyota or any business to file the complaint online at www.tn.gov/consumer or by calling 800-342-8385.

Consumers may also contact Toyota at 800-331-4331.