Federal Judge Grants Certification of Proposed Nissan Rogue Class

Owners and those who lease certain Nissan vehicles are suing the company over a defect in the vehicles’ Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB) system. Drivers and passengers of 2017-2021 Nissan Rogues, Rogue Sports, Altimas, and Kicks have been caught in scary situations when the vehicles’ AEB system stops the vehicles for no reason. They say that Nissan knew about the problem but failed to fix it. 

On March 31, Tennessee Federal Court Judge William L. Campbell, Jr. certified a ten-state class of Nissan owners to bring claims concerning the sudden unintended brake activation (SUBA) issue before the court in a class action lawsuit. Class actions consolidate cases with similar questions of fact or law, creating efficiency for the courts and all parties involved.

California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas are currently participating in the class action against Nissan. A nationwide class may still form.

Beasley Allen lawyer Dee Miles serves as interim co-lead counsel for the plaintiffs’ class. He brings over 30 years of class action and multidistrict litigation (MDL) experience to the case. Federal district judges nationwide have appointed Dee to MDL leadership roles. 

Dee recently served as co-lead counsel with the firm’s Demet Basar in a class action against Toyota over defective Denso fuel pumps, securing over $287 million for 6.5 million class members. He also served as co-lead class counsel with Demet in the dangerous Toyota Sienna sliding doors class action.

Our firm has the experience and resources to represent clients nationwide in consumer class actions including automotive defect class actions, while never losing sight of the individual.

The Problem

A faulty Continental ARS410 sensor in the affected Nissan models causes the vehicles to brake without driver input when there are no obstacles in the vehicles’ path. The SUBA defect endangers drivers and passengers, causing accidents and other hazards.

The affected Nissan vehicles include:

• 2017-2020 Nissan Rogues
• 2017-2021 Nissan Rogue Sports 
• 2019-2021 Nissan Altimas
• 2020-2021 Nissan Kicks

Consumers who own or lease vehicles with the defect began filing complaints with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in 2017, the same year Nissan released AEB. They complained of unnecessary, sudden stopping occurring everywhere from open highways to parking garages. Some said they heard “a loud grinding noise” or that it sounded like they were “driving over rumble strips” when the sudden braking occurred. During the incidents, there were no hazardous objects blocking the vehicles’ way.

What is the AEB System?

When working properly, AEB uses radar to detect objects in a vehicle’s path. The system sends audio and visual warnings to drivers, alerting them to brake if they are too close to another vehicle. If the driver does not apply the brakes, the AEB system stops the vehicle to prevent a collision or reduces the vehicle’s speed if an accident is unavoidable.

Nissan SUBA Defect Class Action

Lawyers in the firm’s Consumer Fraud & Commercial Litigation Section first filed a class action for consumers in 2019. The current class action consolidates three lawsuits over the braking system defect into one. Beasley Allen, Bailey Glasser, Stranch Law Firm, Bursor Fischer, and DiCello Levitt represent the class.

Class members filed suit against Nissan North America and Nissan Motor Corporation, alleging that Nissan knew about the SUBA defect before placing class vehicles on the market. They also argue that Nissan never warned consumers or fixed the problem. Owners and those who lease the affected Nissan models say they would not have purchased or leased the vehicles had they known about the defect.

Lawyers representing both sides will now reach a court-approved agreement, or a jury will decide the case.