Gun maker Forjas Taurus SA has agreed to a $30 million class action settlement with plaintiffs who claim that some of their handguns are made with defective safeties that are capable of firing when dropped — even when the safety is locked.

The Brazilian gun manufacturer will give class members extended warranties, training and $30 million to settle the allegations made in the class action lawsuit.

Plaintiff Chris Carter and Taurus have filed a joint motion asking for preliminary approval of the class action settlement in a Florida federal court.

While Taurus continues to deny any wrongdoing, the company has agreed to pay Class Members up to $200 for pistols that were returned in addition to an enhanced lifetime warranty and training for the firearms.

This Taurus class action lawsuit affects nine handgun models that includes six PT Millennium models.

The $200 is based on fewer than 10,000 guns being returned. The minimum that class members will receive is $150, if 200,000 claims are filed. Taurus will also pay $9 million in attorneys’ fees.

The training Class Members will receive is for the purpose of addressing the alleged defects, which will cover basic handling instructions for pistols. The pistols which are at issue in the class action lawsuit may also receive a free inspection by Taurus under the new warranty terms, according to the firearms class action settlement agreement.

Carter alleged in his class action lawsuit that the Taurus pistols in question “contain a drop-fire defect that may cause the pistols to fire when dropped from a normal height, and a false safety defect which allows the pistols to unintentionally fire even when the manual safety lever in in the ‘on’ or ‘safe’ position and the trigger moves rearward.”

Carter is a deputy for the Scott County, Iowa, sheriff’s department. He filed the class action lawsuit after his own Taurus gun fired while he was working one day as a narcotics agent and he dropped his gun on the ground in the middle of a pursuit. When the gun fell, it fired even though the safety was on. However, no one was shot, only a car was hit.

According to the class action lawsuit, Taurus was aware of the defects in their guns since 2007. In addition, the class action lawsuit also cited lawsuits that Taurus settled over injuries that allegedly occurred from unintended discharges. Also, the Sao Paulo State Military Police in Brazil reportedly recalled 98,000 Taurus firearms in 2013 because the alleged trigger problems.

The Taurus class action lawsuit charged the Brazilian gun maker with suppression, failure to warn, violating the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, and state consumer protection laws.

“At all relevant times to this action, the Taurus defendants fraudulently concealed and intentionally failed to warn plaintiff and class members of the safety defects with the intent to deceive the plaintiff, class members and general public without knowledge of the defects,” the defective firearm class action lawsuit said.

The plaintiffs are represented by David L. Selby II, John W. Barrett and Patricia M. Kipnis of Bailey & Glasser LLP, Ira H. Leesfield, Carol Lynn Finklehoffe and Thomas B. Scolaro of Leesfield & Partners PA, Todd Wheeles of Morris Haynes Hornsby & Wheeles, and Angelo “Tony” Marino Jr.

Forjas Taurus is represented by Timothy A. Bumann, John Patrick Marino and David A. Mobley of Smith Gambrell Russell LLP.

The Taurus Defective Firearm Class Action Lawsuit is Carter v. Forjas Taurus SA et al., Case No. 1:13-cv-24583, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

UPDATE: A website has been established with more information about the Taurus class action settlement. As of Oct. 14, 2015, the Claim Form was not yet available. However, you can register to receive updates about when the Claim Form is available. Click here or visit www.TaurusCarterSettlement.com for details.

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