1st court hearing in Miami on exploding air bag lawsuits

MIAMI (AP) – The first hearing is set in Miami federal court for dozens of lawsuits filed around the U.S. seeking damages for allegedly defective auto air bags made by Japan’s Takata Corp.

The lawsuits are being consolidated for pretrial rulings before U.S. District Judge Federico Moreno, who set Friday’s hearing to set a schedule and discuss other issues.

More than 70 potential class-action lawsuits claim the air bags are defective because they can explode and cause injury or death with flying debris. At least six deaths have been linked to Takata air bags, sparking federal investigations.

The lawsuits mostly claim unspecified economic damages stemming from the lost value of the vehicles containing the air bags. None of the current cases seek damages for personal injury, but some could be added later.