The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is suing the California-based company ZAP, which imports Chinese-made electric motorcycles. The NHTSA is claiming ZAP has failed to fix unsafe brake systems in the 2008 ZAP Xebra three-wheeled motorcycle. Brakes need to work properly and efficiently to prevent serious motorcycle accidents.
In the lawsuit filed last month in the US District Court in Washington, the NHTSA seeks more than $17 million in civil fines and more than $3,000 in refunds to be paid to the owners of certain motorcycles.
The NHTSA claims ZAP did not provide accurate and complete information about the motorcycle’s recall, and that ZAP claimed to have come up with an effective fix for the defective brakes when in fact it had not. Late last year, the NHTSA required ZAP to refund its customers and to destroy any motorcycles remaining in the company’s possession. Apparently ZAP has not complied. ZAP had issued four different recalls, but allegedly did not have contact information for all 691 owners, and, according to the NHTSA, the recalls were false anyway because they stated the owners should go to the dealer for a repair that the NHTSA says was never actually developed.
Unsafe vehicles can lead to serious car accidents, and can cause devastating injuries such as:
If you’ve been in an accident that was caused by a defective vehicle or someone else’s negligence, you deserve compensation.
If you were injured in a motorcycle accident, or a loved one was injured or killed in an accident, please contact the Law Offices of Michael Barszcz, M.D., J.D., to schedule a free consultation with our experienced Orlando accident attorney.