After a Canadian was killed and a US driver suffered injuries in a Toyota vehicle because of their seatbelt breaking during different collisions, the Japanese firm, Toyota Motor Corporation, has set plans in motion to recall 2.87 million vehicles that may be experiencing the same issues worldwide.
According to a Thursday statement from the company, the recall would affect the Toyota’s RAV4 sport utility vehicle made between July 2005 and August 2014 and between October 2005 and January 2016.
Also, the company will be recalling its Japan-only Vanguard SUV which were produced between October 2005 and January 2016.
Explaining the reason for the recall, the company statement read: “There is a possibility that, in the event of a very severe frontal crash, the lap seatbelt belt webbing could contact a portion of the metal seat cushion frame and come off.”
While 1.3 million vehicles will be recalled from North America, 625,000 will be recalled from Europe.
In addition, 434,000 will be recalled from China, 177,000 from Japan and 307,000 from other regions.
To resolve the problem with the seatbelt, the company said it would add resin covers to the vehicles’ metal seat cushion frames to prevent the seatbelt from being cut in a crash.
However, a company representative said it could not be ascertained if the defects with the seatbelts were responsible for the accidents.