The death of 27-year-old actor Anton Yelchin has sparked a class-action lawsuit from Jeep owners who claim a “defective” gearshift has caused more than 300 deaths.
Yelchin died Sunday after his 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee rolled backward down the steep driveway of his Studio City, California, home, pinning him against a security fence and brick pillar.
In the complaint filed against Fiat Chrysler Automobiles - Jeep’s manufacturer - three plaintiffs claim that the company deliberately covering up the defective gearshift that they say is to blame for more than 300 deaths including Yelchin’s.
“One of the most basic safety features in every car is the gear shifter that causes a stationary car to remain stationary, unless and until an operator wants the car to move,” states the complaint, obtained by The Hollywood Reporter, reads. “FCA US LLC broke this basic rule.”
Yelchin’s Jeep was one of 1.1 million vehicles listed in a massive recall by FCA. According to the complaint, the defective gearshift, called a “ZF shifter”, rested in a central position giving no indication to the driver that the vehicle was securely parked.
“FCA’s unreasonable delay in fixing the defect and its warning letter was obviously too little, too late for Mr Yelchin,” the complaint adds, “and nearly a million Defective Shifter Vehicles remain in unsuspecting owners’ driveways and garages.”
The suit was filed by the firm Hagens Berman Sobel Shapiro LLP for Deryl Wall, Justine Andollo, and Danielle and Joby Hackett. They are demanding that FCA replace shifters or install a safety override system.
They estimate damages will amount to at least $5m (£3.7m).
Representatives for FCA were not immediately available to respond to request for comment about the suit. The manufacturer said they would like to evaluate the vehicle involved in the accidental death, according to the Detroit Free Press.
“First, from my perspective and FCA's perspective, we are obviously extending our deep sympathies to the family and friends [of Yelchin]," Mike Manley, head of Ram and Jeep brands for FCA, said at a media event in Chelsea, Michigan. “Obviously we would like our own people to go over the vehicle. However that may or may not happen.”
Yelchin died a month before the scheduled release of his latest film, Star Trek Beyond, directed by Justin Lin.
