Christina and Sgt. John Snell
Columbus, GA – A few months ago TheBayNet.com reported the story of a U.S. Army sergeant and his wife, who claimed they were being sued by a car manufacturer. According to Sgt. John Snell and his wife Christina, Toyota had filed the suit to, in the Snell’s opinion, circumvent the Lemon Law. A petition of support for the Snells was circulated by change.org.
Now comes word that Toyota has dropped its suit and the Snells have a new car. An online publication, Military.com, reported Jan. 27 that Toyota has dropped its appeal of a Georgia arbitration panel’s ruling in favor of the Snells. The Military.com story, Toyota offered to settle the case late last year. “The Snells said they did not want any additional cash as part of the settlement—just their car to be replaced and some lawyer fees to be paid,” the story stated.
In 2013 the Snells purchased a new Toyota RAV 4 from a Toyota dealership in Georgia. John Snell, an Army tank commander—was transferred to Germany. They had the RAV 4 moved to Germany. About a year later the vehicle began breaking down at unpredictable moments, according to Christina Snell. “At first Toyota refused to repair our vehicle unless we paid for the parts and labor out-of-pocket in advance,” she told change.org. “Even after we persisted, Toyota failed to provide the necessary parts, leaving us without a vehicle for months.”
The arbitration panel ruled that the RAV 4 was unsafe and indeed a lemon. Toyota was ordered to take the vehicle back and replace it but refused, according to the Snells. Instead the car manufacturer sought a court ruling. The Snells contended that the manufacturer wanted a court ruling “that would allow them to get away with selling defective new cars to military families in our country without having to honor the warranties if the families are later stationed outside the U.S. and take the car with them.”
The Military.com story, written by Amy Bushatz, quotes Rosemary Shahan of Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety was declaring that the settlement “sends a very healthy message to manufacturers. Toyota is very big. They thought they could get away with this.” Shahan hailed the settlement as a big victory for military consumers.
When TheBayNet.com first filed the story comment was sought from Toyota, however, no reply was ever received. According to Military.com, Toyota has not responded to their requests for comment about the settlement.
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com
Columbus, GA – A U.S. Army sergeant and his wife claim they are being sued by a motor vehicle manufacturer so that a “Lemon Law” can be circumvented. A petition on behalf of the couple—Sgt. John Snell and his wife, Christina—is being circulated by change.org.
According to a summary posted by the petition website, in 2013 the Snell purchased a new Toyota RAV 4 from a Toyota dealership in Georgia. Sergeant Snell, a tank commander, was sent to Germany and relocated there with Christina Snell. “About a year later it (RAV 4) began breaking down at unpredictable moments, leaving me stranded on winding country roads in the middle of winter in Germany,” Christina Snell stated in the petition summary. “At first, Toyota refused to repair our vehicle unless we paid for the parts and labor out of pocket in advance. Even after we persisted, Toyota failed to provide the necessary parts, leaving us without a vehicle for months.
Eventually a panel of arbitrators ruled that our RAV 4 was unsafe and declared it a lemon. Toyota was ordered to take back our vehicle and replace it, but they refused. Instead, now they are suing us. Why? They want to get a ruling in court that will allow them to get away with selling defective new cars to military families in our country without having to honor the warranties if the families are later stationed outside the U.S. and take the cars with them.”
Christina Snell accused Toyota of cheating U.S. military families. “Unfortunately, Toyota does not want to honor that commitment or their warranty,” she stated. “They claim that because we are in the military and took the car with us to Germany, they do not have to comply with Georgia’s auto lemon law.”
TheBayNet.com has sent a missive to Toyota seeking comment on the matter. A response has not been received. However, in a statement published in Military.com, company officials said that they are working directly with the Snell family, which is still driving the now repaired vehicle at their new home at Fort Benning, Georgia. Toyota officials said they cannot comment on the case, but that they extend a special warranty to service members stationed overseas. “Toyota’s policy is to provide members of the U.S. military serving overseas with goodwill warranty coverage, including for services performed outside the geographic region of a specific limited warranty,” they said in a statement.
For more information about the petition drive, visit change.org.
Contact Marty Madden at marty.madden@thebaynet.com