Former FBI Director to Oversee Compensation for Takata Air Bag Victims
Former FBI Director Robert Mueller will administer payments to victims of faulty air bags made by Takata.
The U.S. District Court in Detroit is naming a former director of the FBI to oversee restitution payments connected to defective air bags built by the Takata Corporation.
Faulty air bag inflators made by Takata could explode and shower the passengers of a vehicle with shrapnel.
More than a dozen fatalities and hundreds of injuries are tied to the problem.
In January Takata pleaded guilty to wire fraud and also agreed to create an almost $1 billion fund to compensate victims and automakers who sustained costs for recalling vehicles equipped with the air bags.
Now a federal judge in Detroit says he intends to appoint former FBI Director Robert Mueller to oversee the compensation fund.
The judge previously imposed a $25 million fine on Takata, saying he could have required the company to pay a much larger penalty but feared that cost could drive it out of business and prevent victims from receiving any compensation.
