State Farm considers going after Toyota

Will car insurance companies start suing Toyota to seek reimbursement for customer claims made as a result of faulty parts? State Farm, the nation’s largest home and auto insurance company, recently announced that it’s considering subrogation action against Toyota for claims State Farm paid due to defects that have been the subject of Toyota’s recalls.

I don’t blame insurance companies for trying to recoup their costs – especially when at least one insurance company has been warning the National Highway Safety Traffic Administration (NHSTA) about some of these issues for years. NHSTA is responsible for communicating that information to car manufacturers.

Insurance companies are often the first to spot defects in cars based on the claims they receive. State Farm officials told Insure.com that they notified the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about possible acceleration issues in Toyota and Lexus models back in 2007.

If the NHSTA was quicker to act, we could have prevented some of these car accidents. How do you think this will impact Toyota? Our economy?