Philadelphia Personal Injury Attorney Blog | Pomerantz Perlberger & Lewis LLP

On July 22, a US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that the government may not withhold data on serious car accidents from the public, including journalists, consumer watchdog groups, and defective product injury lawyers.

In 2000, in response to the danger caused by SUV rollovers partly as a result of Firestone tire tread separation, Congress passed a law that manufacturers of tires, cars, motorcycles, and child car seats must report information on defects that cause serious injuries, wrongful deaths, and property damage to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The law was intended to allow the agency to quickly identify defective products. The agency had been keeping this data secret, analyzing it and issuing recalls on its own.

Numerous public safety organizations had filed to see that information, but the NHTSA had kept it secret, but industry lobbying groups, led by the Rubber Manufacturers Association, had fought to keep it secret. They claim that the information, essentially how often certain products are involved in certain types of car accidents, should be considered propriety trade secrets. They also claim that the law is effective without releasing that data to the public and point to the fact that the information has allowed NHTSA to issue recalls earlier than before.

However, public interest groups argued that the effectiveness of the data as a public warning is greatly increased if the public has free access to it. They hailed the ruling, but industry advocates said that the decision would lead to misinformation and hysteria.

If you have been involved in an auto accident that was caused or worsened by a defective auto part, contact an experienced defective product and car accident lawyer at Pomerantz, Perlberger, and Lewis, LLP today for a free consultation and case evaluation.