Takata Reaches Settlement Deal with Injured Drivers

Santa Cruz,CATakata, the Japanese maker of airbags that contained defective inflators, which caused injuries and more than a dozen deaths of drivers and passengers, has reached a settlement to pay tort claimants.

According to the terms of the deal, which was reached over the weekend, a trust would be established, from which tort claimants would be paid, based on the type of injury each claimant had suffered.

The payments would range from a minimum of $10,000 for minor bruising or non-permanent eye injuries to $5 million for a fatality or severe injuries such as permanent vision loss in both eyes.

The deal also makes each of the injury types “stackable,” so that claimants with multiple injuries could receive a recovery based on each injury. Fatalities are the only exception to the “stackable” provision, as they will be paid out once only.

Notably, the settlement documents stipulate that claimants who take part in the trust would not be able to pursue their claims against Takata and the automakers in other venues.

The settlement hinges on a $1.6 billion sale to competitor Key Safety Systems Inc., which is expected to fund a large portion of creditor recoveries.

In June 2017, Takata filed for Chapter 11 protection, as it was potentially facing billions of dollars in liability resulting from its faulty airbags.