Toyota RAV4 Class Action Lawsuit Filed Over Fire Risk from Defective 12-Volt Battery
A class action lawsuit has been filed over design problems with Toyota RAV4 vehicles from certain model years, alleging that the batteries are prone to shorting out, which may cause the vehicle to suddenly stall or cause an engine compartment fire.
The complaint (PDF) was filed by four plaintiffs in the United States District Court Central District of California on June 24, alleging Toyota Motors intentionally concealed known safety defects related to the 12-volt batteries supplied in certain vehicles, as part of an effort to avoid issuing a RAV4 recall.
Plaintiff’s seeks class action status to pursue damages on behalf of similarly situated owners and lessee’s of model year 2013 through 2018 Toyota RAV4 vehicles, accusing the Japanese auto maker of marketing and selling vehicles with known substantial safety hazards, and placing profits over consumer safety.
Did You Know?
Millions of Philips CPAP Machines Recalled
Philips DreamStation, CPAP and BiPAP machines sold in recent years may pose a risk of cancer, lung damage and other injuries.
Learn MoreAccording to the allegations raised in the lawsuit, the model year 2013 through 2018 Toyota RAV4 vehicles contain defective and dangerous batteries, in which the 12V battery B+ terminal may short out because of contact with the battery hold down frame, and cause a sudden loss of electrical power, vehicle stall and/or a fire originating in the engine compartment.
Plaintiffs claim Toyota knew about the problem since at least 2016, after multiple consumer complaints indicating sudden loss of electrical power, stalling or fires in the engine compartment were reported to the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
The lawsuit outlines several high profile incidents related to Toyota RAV4 battery Problems, one of which occurred back in 2018, when a Minneapolis couple’s brand new 2018 RAV4 spontaneously caught on fire and exploded in the middle of the night. Another incident involved a San Diego family in 2019, who noticed smoke emanating from the steering column of their 2017 RAV4. The family was able to exit the vehicle seconds prior to the interior of the car becoming consumed in flames.
Another incident, recorded by NHTSA in February 2020, involved a man from Maryland who reported parking his Toyota RAV4 under his carport. Shortly after exiting the vehicle he noticed the front end was consumed in flames, which spread to his wife’s vehicle and then to the carport attached to his home. The local fire department was dispatched to extinguish the fire and prevent the fire from spreading further.
Plaintiffs allege that Toyota has dodged the real issue at hand to avoid paying for costly damages, as well as avoiding the expenses associated with a recall campaign to replace the batteries. The plaintiff’s argue that had they known of the defective and potentially dangerous batteries, they would have bargained or paid significantly less for the vehicles, or chose an alternative vehicle.
The lawsuit presents claims of fraudulent concealment, deceptive business practices, unjust enrichment, breach of implied warranty and breach of expressed warranty, among others.
It was filed amid an ongoing NHTSA investigation launched in March, following nearly a dozen Toyota RAV4 fire reports.
Preliminary data collected from the investigation indicates seven vehicle owners reported driving under routine conditions when the vehicle stalled prior to noticing an engine compartment fire, while the remaining four fires occurred when the vehicles were parked, with the engine turned off.
The investigation covers an estimated 1,862,103 Toyota RAV4 crossovers from model years 2013 through 2018, which were distributed for sale throughout the U.S. to licensed dealers.
NHTSA stated additional information will be provided as the investigation continues and that customers should report all incidents to the Vehicle Safety Hotline at 1-888-327-4236.
Get more articles like this sent directly to your inbox.
"*" indicates required fields
13 Comments
FelipeJanuary 26, 2023 at 2:01 am
I have a 2013 rav4 and 82.000 miles I recently felt shudder and shift errors and low speed jeering and now I'm worried as I read theses articles of toyota not supporting this issue or charging for inspection what do you think I should do .
StevenDecember 3, 2022 at 6:08 pm
My 2020 RAV4 caught fire after sitting in the cold for 9 hours. Fire department believes it was an electrical issue involving the fuel pump as the gasoline ignited, burning the whole car. Toyota has been no help at this time, won’t even send someone to look at the vehicle.
StaciSeptember 14, 2022 at 3:39 pm
My 2014 Rav4 caught fire yesterday. The battery support bar is burnt. It was in the shop being repaired from a recent sideswipe accident. They dropped it off to get it aligned and when they returned the alignment company stated they the battery was acting up. It was dropping power etc. As they were discussing it, they noticed that the car was smoking, ran out to find that it was on fire. They put [Show More]My 2014 Rav4 caught fire yesterday. The battery support bar is burnt. It was in the shop being repaired from a recent sideswipe accident. They dropped it off to get it aligned and when they returned the alignment company stated they the battery was acting up. It was dropping power etc. As they were discussing it, they noticed that the car was smoking, ran out to find that it was on fire. They put it out and towed it back to the collision shop.
SarahJuly 23, 2022 at 1:07 pm
My 2017 Rav4 lost power then flames started coming out of my dash. I was able to exit the vehicle but lost my purse and all other belongings. Now I’m so scared to be in any vehicle.
MonalisaJuly 6, 2022 at 4:31 pm
My Toyota RAV4 2017 model met with an accident while I was trying to take a left turn on yield and a vehicle came from front and hit my car. The other vehicle had repairable body damage which wasn’t much but My car caught fire and burnt in-front of my eyes within 3-4 minutes and got totaled. The collision was not at all impactful as I was at a speed of 15-20 mph and the other car would have been [Show More]My Toyota RAV4 2017 model met with an accident while I was trying to take a left turn on yield and a vehicle came from front and hit my car. The other vehicle had repairable body damage which wasn’t much but My car caught fire and burnt in-front of my eyes within 3-4 minutes and got totaled. The collision was not at all impactful as I was at a speed of 15-20 mph and the other car would have been in 30mph. How can the car burn completely in such a low impact? We complained to Toyota and They replied back saying the car had no issues whereas after the accident after around a month We received a letter from Toyota saying there is some battery issue for which you need to get your car to the service center. Now I am just connecting the dots probably there had been some issue for which the car completely burnt in such a low impact accident. What would you people suggest? Does Toyota has to compensate Us for this mishap? How can They just getaway?
DebraJune 19, 2022 at 8:54 am
We had a 2015 Toyota RAV4 that lost power during a road trip. We were able to maneuver partly to side of road but were then hit from behind. Thankfully no serious medical injuries but car was totaled. How can we participate in the class action suit?
SarahMay 23, 2022 at 3:49 pm
My 2015 Rav4 caught fire after a battery issue about a year and a half ago. I had pulled out of my driveway onto a very busy downtown road and the car stalled. I remained in the car attempting to troubleshoot when someone ran up to me and informed me that flames were coming out from under the hood. Luckily a couple of people had a fire extinguisher in their near-by cars. Unfortunately, the the eng[Show More]My 2015 Rav4 caught fire after a battery issue about a year and a half ago. I had pulled out of my driveway onto a very busy downtown road and the car stalled. I remained in the car attempting to troubleshoot when someone ran up to me and informed me that flames were coming out from under the hood. Luckily a couple of people had a fire extinguisher in their near-by cars. Unfortunately, the the engine also caught fire and totaled the vehicle. I am glad that no one was hurt.
AntoinetteMarch 29, 2022 at 6:07 pm
Had my car shut off 3times as I was driving my vehicle lost all power steering. Steering wheel locked only thing I could do was wait for my car to start back up. The last time it happened smoke came out of my car and it never turned back on. My mechanic told me I was lucking my car didn’t catch on fire and fry my whole system. Toyota should made it a full recall the consumer shouldn't be charged f[Show More]Had my car shut off 3times as I was driving my vehicle lost all power steering. Steering wheel locked only thing I could do was wait for my car to start back up. The last time it happened smoke came out of my car and it never turned back on. My mechanic told me I was lucking my car didn’t catch on fire and fry my whole system. Toyota should made it a full recall the consumer shouldn't be charged for anything. Battery or labor but they are charging the consumer the price. Guess the consumers life don’t matter to them.
ChelseaDecember 28, 2021 at 2:52 pm
My 2014 Toyota RAV4 caught fire in my attached garage on March 20, 2021. The fire spread to my entire home and resulted in a total loss of my home and its contents.
CindyDecember 10, 2021 at 8:36 pm
My 2020 RAV4 went on fire just sitting in the yard. I had just arrived at the some place and got out of the vehicle. An hour later, with me being inside, the vehicle just caught fire and burned.
AmandaOctober 17, 2021 at 2:02 am
My 2012 rav4 caught fire tonight out of no where it’s been sitting for a couple months I put the radiator back in over a week ago and I get a call out of no where it got hot around the battery and caught fire
JasonAugust 5, 2021 at 8:10 pm
My 2005 Rav4 got the same problem: when I drove it on highway, it stalled and caught fires. I could exit the car unharmed and called fire fighters, but the car was totally consumed by fire before the firefighters arrived.
MichaelJuly 8, 2021 at 11:57 pm
My 2015 RAV4 has around three batteries already in five years. I went to the car dozens of times and have had to jumpstart it. I knew that this car had battery issues before this was announced. I have always taking the car to Toyota and they never even mentioned this issue. It’s 2021 We barely have 20,000 miles on the car because we are reluctant to take it anywhere and end up stranded.