Category: Blog

GM Recall Scandal Ignites Nader Call for Legislation and Senate Bill Introduced


GM Recall Scandal Ignites Nader Call for Legislation and Senate Bill Introduced

August, 2014

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

See Nader interview at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZZHeIArIRQ

See informative articles on introduction of Senate Bill athttp://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140801/AUTO01/308010094/1148/rss25#comments

See Bill Summary athttp://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/MVHSEASummary.pdf

and http://www.mccaskill.senate.gov/media-center/news-releases/automotive-and-highway-safety-bill-introduced-by-mccaskill

Lou

NHTSA and Hyundai Agree to a Civil Penalty of $17.35 Million


NHTSA and Hyundai Agree to a Civil Penalty of $17.35 Million

August, 2014

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:
NHTSA – Hyundai Agreement The attached Agreement was co-authored by NHTSA & Hyundai in private meetings.  As you read it consider the following questions: 
1.  What should the corporate penalty be for withholding from the public information that could result in preventable deaths and disabilities for American people?
2.  Who should decide?
3.  Under what transparency conditions should the decisions be made?
Senate Bill on Penalties
Senate Hearings Ahead
Senator McCaskill’s Committee is holding Hearings soon on NHTSA’s performance and participation in both GM and NHTSA’s failures to protect the public — for nearly a decade in the case of the GM Ignition Switch Recall.
The Times asked for comment:

“Rosemary Shahan, president of Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety, said that provision may be a result of regulators being “under more scrutiny than ever before,” but that it was a welcome surprise.

“I hope it’s a trend,” she said.”

I agreed and thought the agreement penalty was a slap on the wrist for a corporation of Hyundai’s size.How does one judge the significance of a NHTSA – Hyundai agreement penalty of $17.4 million?

Hyundai – NHTSA Agreement on Value of Fine

The cost of a single 30 second ad for the Super Bowl was $4 million plus a production cost of about $1 million.  Seehttp://admeter.usatoday.com/story/sports/ad-meter/super-bowl/2014/01/20/ad-meter-story-super-bowl-ad-costs/4476441/

Hyundai bought two 30 second ads for this last Super Bowl at a cost approaching $10 million.  Seehttp://adage.com/article/special-report-super-bowl/hyundai-advertise-fox-s-broadcast-super-bowl-xlviii/244008/http://adage.com/article/special-report-super-bowl/super-bowl-ad-chart-buying-super-bowl-2014/244024/

Compare that $10 million to NHTSA’s annual budget for the Office of Defects Investigation which also is about $10 million.
Now let’s compare the cost of those two Super Bowl ads to the DOT policy value of just one statistical life — $9.1 million.  See attached DOT Policy Guidance on Value of Life (a morally reprehensible but required bureaucratic policy exercise of placing a dollar value on life).  
Why Did NHTSA Agree?
Appearances often are important in Washington especially when an agency and a company are facing negative scrutiny for known failures to protect people in favor of profits.  As a regulator, if NHTSA has been shown to be a weak regulator, it must at least appear tough before the Hearings.  
And if you can make GM look like it is not as bad as others, too, that’s a smart political opportunity.   As shown in NHTSA – Hyundai Agreement “Nature of Action” items 5, 6, and 8 both GM and Hyundai were notified by their supplier of a brake fluid corrosion problem in 2012.  GM, in November 2012, issued a Technical Service Bulletin (TSB) to its dealers in the U.S. and informed its customers.  Hyundai, in March 2013, issued a TSB to its dealers but not to its customers.
The Agreement states:
“WHEREAS, it is the mutual desire of NHTSA and Hyundai to resolve the TQ14-002 without the need for further action, to avoid the legal expenses and other costs of a protracted dispute and potential litigation:…”  Hyundai and NHTSA agree to the terms of the Consent Order (See attached).
Note: To my knowledge, neither crash victims past, present, and future nor consumer advocates were participants in these private meetings between NHTSA and Hyundai.  Nor does the Agreement address the tax deductibility of the civil penalties or legal and other expenses of Hyundai.  So taxpayers may be paying for this in more ways than one.
Hopefully, the Hearings will address these issues on behalf of the public interest as consumers, taxpayers, insurance premium payers, and motorists, cyclists, and pedestrians.  
The NHTSA – Hyundai Agreement came out as the nation was noting the 40th Anniversary of the resignation of President Nixon for criminal activities, abuses of power, coverups, and obstruction of justice.  One can read transcripts of the Watergate Tapes with discussions of Nixon with CEOs of Ford and GM (Henry Ford II, Lee Iacocca, John Roche) discussing weakening auto safety and air pollution regulations.  See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/assets/Nixon-Transcriptions.pdf
Presidents Nixon, Reagan, both Bushes, Clinton and Obama, as well as VP Biden, and candidate Romney have failed the American people.  More than two million Americans have died of crash injuries since Nixon took office.  Seehttp://www.fairwarning.org/2012/09/a-strange-indifference-to-highway-carnage/
So is the NHTSA – Hyundai Agreement more evidence of covering up the corporate control of NHTSA?
Lou

 

A Step Toward A Safer America – Texting to 911- Safer America, Care for Crash Victims, Crash Statistics, USA Crash Deaths Statistics, USA Crash Research


A Step Toward A Safer America – Texting to 911

August, 2014

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Please see new FCC Action on Texting to 911.http://www.fcc.gov/document/fcc-adopts-rules-promote-widespread-text-911-availability

Lou

 

U.S. News Article on GM Recall and Nader’s Warnings


U.S. News Article on GM Recall and Nader’s Warnings

August, 2014

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

To recognize Nader’s warnings, it takes a scandal involving tragedies….

See http://www.usnews.com/opinion/blogs/susan-milligan/2014/04/02/gms-recall-debacle-shows-ralph-naders-auto-warnings-still-ring-true

And we still don’t know how much GM and NHTSA knew using OnStar data.  

“OnStar handles about 10,000 emergency service requests a month, GM says. The figure that could go down as drivers have a greater understanding about what is (and isn’t) going on with their car….

A company spokesperson declined to comment on how the system’s data could have informed GM about faulty parts.”

See  http://fortune.com/2014/08/06/gm-car-safety-mary-chan/

Over the decade of this scandal, a GM report, published by NHTSA, in 2007 suggests there may have been about 3,500 airbag non-deployment frontal crashes.

Has NHTSA requested all such airbag non- deployment frontal crash OnStar data be made available to the public?
Lou

 

NHTSA Web Site Launches Recall Status of Vehicles by VIN Look Up


NHTSA Web Site Launches Recall Status of Vehicles by VIN Look Up

August, 2014

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Good News:  NHTSA has a new tool to help motorists with recalls.  See

http://www.nhtsa.gov/About+NHTSA/Press+Releases/2014/New-free-online-search-tool-for-recalls-using-VIN-released

 

Volvo and IIHS See Vision Zero Crash Fatalities & Serious Injuries by 2020 Coming Into View


Volvo and IIHS See Vision Zero Crash Fatalities & Serious Injuries by 2020 Coming Into View

August, 2014

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

See the latest article on Vision Zero Progress athttp://www.thedetroitbureau.com/2014/08/death-free-highways-have-become-a-real-possibility/

Now if Congressional leaders would begin setting such a goal for the nation and/or the President would adopt such a goal, our chances of achieving it would be greatly improved.

We need such national leadership at this time to turn tragedy into safety here in the U.S.A.

See https://www.careforcrashvictims.com/assets/MonthlyReport-June-July-2014.pdf

Proverbs teach us “Where there is no vision, the people perish.”

We can, and must, adopt such a noble and moral goal.  Yes we can.

Lou

 

Obama To Talk Auto Safety — To Defend Tragic Years of Failure to Protect American Crash Victims


Obama To Talk Auto Safety — To Defend Tragic Years of Failure to Protect American Crash Victims

July, 2014

Dear Care for Crash Victims Community Members:

Tomorrow President Obama will try to divert public attention from his failures to protect Americans from crash injuries by touting DOT funding of research of auto companies.“Washington — President Barack Obama on Tuesday will tout the importance of “vehicle to vehicle” technology research that could one day help save tens of thousands of road deaths, the White House said.”

“The speech may provide Obama’s most significant direct remarks on auto safety since taking office. Despite Toyota Motor Corp.’s sudden acceleration crisis in 2010 and General Motors Co.’s ongoing ignition switch problem and massive recalls, Obama has said little about road safety during his tenure.

“Instead he has repeatedly focused on his administration’s efforts to improve fuel efficiency and the fact that the administration saved General Motors and Chrysler Group LLC as part of the $85 billion auto bailout.”

From The Detroit News: http://www.detroitnews.com/article/20140714/AUTO01/307140105#ixzz37V34lHZc

Lincoln reportedly said “You can fool all of the people some of the time…”

President Obama will not do that this time.  The record is now too well known by too many people.  More Americans died of crash injuries under Mr. Obama than died in the Iraq, Afghanistan, Viet Nam and Korean wars combined.  Under President Obama more than 180,000 Americans died of crash injuries nearly 1 million suffered serious injuries and societal costs are approaching several Trillion dollars. See p. 18 crash deaths by year http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/812032.pdf  

When President Obama points to NHTSA research funds given to auto companies tomorrow he will find a skeptical public that will be difficult to fool.  Some may even compare numbers in his speech with numbers of Americans who died in crashes in GM vehicles.   See http://www.scienceservingsociety.com/GMvehFats.htmNumbers of people* killed traveling in GM vehicles, 2000-2012

2012

2011

2010

2009

2008

2007

2006

2005

2004

2003

2002

2001

2000

Totals

Buick / Opel

612

655

672

717

835

903

980

1047

1037

1156

1139

1192

1234

12,179

Cadillac

257

259

265

288

333

348

430

436

431

390

410

425

393

4,665

Chevrolet

4209

4110

4200

4583

4944

5582

5849

6137

6215

6339

6579

6640

6259

71,646

Oldsmobile

287

346

393

427

516

609

754

881

998

990

1119

1209

1250

9,779

Pontiac

797

744

872

890

1013

1174

1240

1300

1495

1428

1596

1586

1549

15,684

GMC

715

685

760

692

825

969

928

948

1003

998

932

945

831

11,231

Saturn

339

333

360

352

457

457

471

556

509

446

394

346

318

5,338

TOTAL

7216

7132

7522

7949

8923

10,042

10,652

11,305

11,688

11,747

12,169

12,343

11,834

130,522

Is it any wonder that President Obama’s poll numbers are at a low?   

Lou