Houston woman: GM recall notice came 2 months after crash took her legs

Problem No. 1: Air bags Senate Commerce Committee member Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla. displays the parts and function of a defective air bag made by Takata of Japan that has been linked to multiple deaths and injuries in cars driven in the U.S. The panel held a hearing Thursday, Nov. 20, 2014, in Washington.



Apologies, but no clear answers for senators less Problem No. 1: Air bags Senate Commerce Committee member Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla. displays the parts and function of a defective air bag made by Takata of Japan that has been linked to multiple deaths and ... more Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, STF Photo: J. Scott Applewhite, STF Image 1 of / 99 Caption Close Houston woman: GM recall notice came 2 months after crash took her legs 1 / 99 Back to Gallery

A Houston-area woman critically injured in a December car accident has filed suit against General Motors, claiming that the crash was caused by her car's faulty ignition switch.

Tiffany Adams, 30, filed the suit April 8 in the 189th State District Court against General Motors, Delphi Automotive, which manufactured the ignition switch, and Mac Haik Auto Direct in Houston, which sold Adams the vehicle.

According to Delphi, the component required to fix the ignition-switch defect costs about $2 to $5, the lawsuit states.

When the accident occurred about 12:40 p.m. Dec. 23, Adams was northbound on U.S. 59 in Polk County, on her way to Lufkin to visit her parents for Christmas.

Without warning, the defective ignition switch caused her 2007 Pontiac Solstice to spin out of control and hit a tree and prevented the car's airbags from deploying, the plaintiff's petition states.

The severe impact left Adams with a broken neck, broken ribs and injuries to her legs that required both to be amputated. The Sam Houston State University graduate moved back to her parents' home in Lufkin, according to the lawsuit.

As stated in the plaintiff's petition, her vehicle's failure to deploy airbags upon impact with the tree was caused by the ignition switch defect.

In March, about two months after the accident, Adams received a letter informing her that her 2007 Pontiac Solstice was among a group of vehicles being recalled.

"Until the recall repairs have been performed, it is very important that you remove all items from your key ring, leaving only the vehicle key," the letter stated. "The key fob (if applicable), should also be removed from your key ring."

The recall letter went on to explain there was a risk, under certain condition, that the ignition switch might move out of the "run" position, resulting in a partial loss of electrical power and the engine being turned off.

"This risk increases if your key ring is carrying added weight (such as more keys or the key fob) or your vehicle experiences rough road conditions or other jarring or impact-related events," the letter stated. "If the ignition switch is not in the run position, the air bags may not deploy if the vehicle is involved in a crash, increasing the risk of injury or fatality."

According to the lawsuit, the ignition switch in question is a simple and inexpensive part. Replacement switches have a longer spring than do the defective switches, producing more tension, the petition states.

"The weak tension of the shorter spring is believed to be the reason why ignition keys in the cars would easily switch from the 'on' position to the 'accessory' position if jostled," the petition states.

Moreover, the lawsuit states, the location of the "ignition module" allows a driver to inadvertently switch the position from "run" (or "on") to "off" or "accessory" (the setting that powers electrical devices such as the radio).

In addition to preventing airbag deployment, an ignition-switch failure also turns off the engine, power steering and anti-lock brakes, according to the lawsuit.

General Motors has acknowledged that the defect has caused at least 13 deaths, but the company has refused to disclose identities of people who died, the petition states.

Adams' lawsuit contends that General Motors engineers knew as early as 2001, during pre-production of the 2003 Saturn Ion, that the ignition switch could unintentionally move from the "run" position to "accessory" but failed to disclose it.

She is seeking unspecified damages.

Adams is represented by two Houston attorneys, W. Mark Lanier of The Lanier Law Firm and Bradley L. Leger of Leger Adkins, as well as two San Francisco lawyers -- Elizabeth J. Cabraser and Todd A. Walburg, with Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein.