TOYOTA Ireland will defend any claims taken against it in the aftermath of the global vehicle recall which affected thousands of cars in Ireland.

Over 18,000 vehicles have been recalled by Toyota Ireland, the majority as a precaution against possible 'sticking' accelerators.

The problem has already been linked to around 19 crash deaths in the US within the past 10 years.

However, legal sources have said Toyota's potential liability in road accidents in this country would have to be proven in court and the car manufacturer would have to be named as a co-defendant.

"If you cause an accident, not through negligence, but through product failure then are you liable? No, you are not," said Dorothy Wear, a partner at Donal, Reilly & Collins, a law firm which specialises in road traffic accidents.

"The only downside is that if you are the one who has been rear-ended then you don't want to go between the driver and Toyota.

"If they [the defendant seeking to blame the manufacturer] don't have Toyota there as a co-defendant then they probably wouldn't have a prayer."

Michael Horan of the Irish Insurance Federation said there were no real concerns of knock-on effects in the industry.

"My understanding of this is that the actual problem only surfaced in a tiny number of cars and the recall was just to be safe," he said. "The Toyota recall has no insurance implications whatsoever."

In a statement, Toyota Ireland said the recalls were relevant to a range of models registered in Ireland between 2005 and late last year.

"Toyota has sought legal advice and has taken all action necessary to implement the advice furnished," it said.

"There have been no reports of accidents in Ireland involving the affected vehicles; however, any claims made against Toyota will be thoroughly investigated."