12 Mercedes-Benz Cars Crashed During Valet Parking in China... Car Owners and Security Guards File Multi-Million Won Lawsuit

Lawsuit Against German Headquarters, Mercedes-Benz Korea, and Dealers
"Sudden Acceleration Due to Vehicle Defect" Alleged

An apartment security guard who caused an accident by driving a resident's Mercedes-Benz vehicle and hitting 12 cars, and the owner of the vehicle have decided to file a multi-billion won lawsuit against the car manufacturer and others. They claim sudden unintended acceleration as the cause of the accident.

On the 2nd, Lawyer Ha Jong-seon of Law Office Namu, representing Mercedes-Benz owner Mr. Lee (63) and security guard Mr. Ahn (77), held a press conference at the Textile Center in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, announcing plans to file civil and criminal lawsuits against Mercedes-Benz’s German headquarters, the importer Mercedes-Benz Korea, and the dealer Han Sung Motor.

Mr. Ahn caused the accident around 8 a.m. on the 22nd of last month while moving Mr. Lee’s double-parked Mercedes-Benz vehicle in the parking lot of an apartment complex in Yeouido-dong, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul. The Mercedes-Benz reportedly reversed strongly once and then suddenly surged forward, hitting 12 parked vehicles in succession. In this apartment complex, it is customary for the security office to keep residents’ car keys and for security guards to move vehicles when necessary. Mr. Ahn reportedly told the police that the vehicle’s speed suddenly increased and the brakes did not work. After the accident, security guard Mr. Ahn quit his job.

Lawyer Ha claims the cause of the accident was sudden unintended acceleration.

The photo is not related to the specific content of the article. A parking lot at an apartment complex in Seoul experiencing parking difficulties / Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

He points out that although Mr. Ahn pressed the brake, the vehicle reversed while the brake lights were on, and then suddenly surged forward without any manipulation of the gear lever, along with the fact that a loud noise was heard from the vehicle at the time of the accident, all of which suggest a defect in the vehicle’s system. Lawyer Ha also mentioned that there is a witness who saw the loud noise coming from the vehicle during the accident. He added, "We plan to file a lawsuit next week at the Seoul Central District Court claiming damages for the security guard’s physical injuries, mental suffering, loss of employment, refund of the accident vehicle, and repair costs of the damaged vehicles." The initial lawsuit amount is about 300 million KRW, with at least 150 million KRW allocated for vehicle repair costs. The claim amount will be increased during the course of the lawsuit.

They are also considering filing a criminal complaint against the Mercedes-Benz headquarters, Mercedes-Benz Korea’s CEO, and responsible executives for professional negligence causing injury. Additionally, they plan to apply to the court for evidence preservation to extract data from the event data recorder (EDR), electronic control unit (ECU), and automatic emergency braking system (AEB) from Mercedes-Benz.

At the press conference, security guard Mr. Ahn tearfully appealed, "I definitely pressed the brake and drove gently, but the car suddenly surged like lightning, hitting several cars and then stopped. It was definitely sudden unintended acceleration. I feel really wronged and devastated. Please uncover the truth."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.