Product Liability Law Blog

Despite the massive product recalls in the past few years due to high levels of lead in certain consumer products, as well as the fact that the toxic ingredient has been banned from household paint for over 30 years, lead poisoning continues to be a health hazard—especially for young children. Lead is more dangerous for young kids, who absorb lead more easily into their bodies. Because their brains are more sensitive to lead than the adult brain, young children are more at risk of sustaining some of the serious injuries that can result from lead poisoning.

Just last week, a Mississippi family was awarded $7 million on behalf of a teenager that continues to experience developmental difficulties following exposure to toxic lead-based paint. Trellvion Gaines’s family claims that he inhaled lead paint dust and chips while staying at his grandmother’s home.

The residence was painted in the early 1970’s using Sherwin-Williams paint. After the lead paint was banned, Gaines’s family claims that they followed the directions provided by the paint maker to remove the old paint and replace it with safer paint. They contend, however, that the toxic paint chips and dust was created when they sanded and scraped the old paint (per the paint manufacturer’s directions).

Gaines, who is in his late teens, now has learning disabilities and his reading abilities are equivialent to that of a second grader. Ingesting paint has been known to increase lead blood levels and cause lead poisoning, which has been linked to cognitive and developmental problems in kids, as well as other catastrophic complications, such as traumatic brain injuries, injuries to the nervous system, mental retardation, growth retardation, coma, and death.

Also this month, another family agreed to settle their New York lead poisoning lawsuit for $1.6 million. The Utica family claimed that four siblings were injured after they were exposed to lead paint chips in two different homes.

Rankeem Gilmore, 17, Tashawn Gilmore, 18, Delqwon Gilmore, 20, and Shaquanda Gilmore, 21, will divide the settlement that two landlords will pay them. Although lead paint can no longer be used to paint homes and other buildings, the toxic paint is still be found in many older homes in the US.

Products Liability Lawsuits
Product manufacturers are supposed to make sure that their toys, paint, and other products do not contain levels of lead that are dangerous enough to cause serious injury to people. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.

Examples of products that may contain toxic levels of lead:

• Paint
• Drinking water
• Painted furniture
• Painted toys

Utica family awarded more than $1 million for lead exposure, UticaOD.com, June 13, 2009

Mississippi jury rules against Sherwin-Williams in lead paint contamination lawsuit, Newsday, June 30, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Lead Poisoning, Mayo Clinic

Toys and Lead, CDC

Consumer Products Safety Commission

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Posted In: Catastrophic Injuries , Injuries to Children & Minors , Lead Poisoning , Mississippi , New York , States , Traumatic Brain Injuries

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Investigators are inspecting all of the signaling circuits in the Metro system following Monday’s devastating DC train crash that injured 80 people and killed 9. The 740-foot-long circuit is a key part of the automated control system for the Metro trains, and yesterday, “anomalies” were discovered when the circuit malfunctioned while undergoing tested.

Metro’s train protection system consists of these circuits, which are located on the track. Whenever a train crosses a circuit, the signals are supposed to be transmitted to following trains. The signals, if working correctly, should automatically adjust a train’s speed so it doesn’t hit the train that is ahead of it. In the event that a train enters the two-block buffer zone, the computers are supposed to activate the train’s brakes. The train that crashed into a second train during rush hour on Monday was run by computers.

The National Transportation Safety Board’s Debbie Hersman says that the NTSB is concerned that the train that smashed into the second train was a 1000-series train—the oldest in the Metro fleet. A few years ago, the NTSB recommended that these trains be replaced because of questions as to whether they could safely withstand a train crash.

These cars have been known to fold into themselves during train accidents. The lead car belonging to the striking train that caused Monday’s devastating collision was compressed by 2/3rds.

Already, the first personal injury lawsuit from this week’s DC train collision has been filed. The parents of 15-year-old Davonne Flanagan are accusing the District of “negligent maintenance” and “negligent operation.” Davonne, who was in the first car of the striking train, fractured his leg. His parents are seeking $950,000.

Train Defects
Train crashes often result in serious injuries and deaths for passengers—especially during rush hour when trains are packed with people. While human error, such as poor maintenance or negligence on the train operator’s part, have been known to cause many catastrophic train crashes, there are train collisions that occur because part of the train malfunctioned, the brakes were fault, the railroad track had a defect, or a signal failed to work correctly.

Metro Reviewing All Train Signaling Circuits in Wake of Accident, Washington Post, June 25, 2009

Suit against Metro alleges negligence, WTOP, June 25, 2009

Washington Metro crash probe eyes speed circuits, AFP, June 25, 2009

NTSB: Train in crash was recommended for phaseout, AP/Yahoo, June 23, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority

National Transportation Safety Board

Continue reading "DC Train Crash: Did Aging, Poorly Designed Cars, Circuit Anomalies, or Other Possible Defects Cause the Deadliest Crash in Metro History?" »

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Posted In: Catastrophic Injuries

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Because of air pollution and other environmental concerns, most Colorado municipalities refuse to allow wood burning fireplaces for new home construction. Thus, if you want a fireplace with your new home, it will probably be a gas flame fireplace.

In the early years of these gas fireplaces, access to the flames was protected by some sort of metal screen. More recently, these fireplaces have been enclosed by glass doors. Fireplaces with glass doors are becoming a source of serious burn injuries to infants and small children.

In a recently published study by Desiree Jimenez and Angela Montgomery of The Children’s Hospital in Denver, the authors reported 82 children with moderate to severe hand burn injuries caused by fireplace glass doors. Five of these kids required skin grafting.

Typical hand burns range from a partial thickness to full thickness in depth. The treatment of hand burn injuries to children is painful and time intensive and the injuries affect a vital anatomical area. Permanent disability often results from contractures leading to a loss in the functional range of hand movement.

You’d think the dangers to children of this product would be obvious to the companies who sell fireplaces with glass doors. Think otherwise! One seller actually pitches its fireplace safety at its website, “Fireplace glass doors provide safety for you and your home. Children and pets are not able to be hurt by a fire while the fireplace doors are closed.” Nothing is said about serious injuries from touching the hot glass and the doors.

Fireplace companies selling this product are also well aware of the risks to children. Testing shows that the glass doors on a fireplace can heat to 400° in six minutes and take 45 minutes to completely cool.

The commercial sellers of these fireplaces also realize that toddlers are especially vulnerable. Most of the burn victims are less than two years old and just learning to walk. They are unsure on their feet and some serious injuries result from falling against the red hot glass.

Toddlers are also curious about fire and are drawn to the doors enclosing the object of their curiosity. Their “touchy feely” instincts lead them to place their little hands on the hot glass.

Obviously, parents with small children are advised to buy homes with safer fireplaces or to replace a glass door fireplace with doors made out of tempered glass. These tempered glass doors do not store heat as efficiently and are much safer for children.

If you choose not to replace the dangerous fireplace, wait until the kids have gone to bed before turning the fireplace on. Also, put a full protective screen around the fireplace in order to prevent children from being able to reach the glass doors.

Heat contact burns, especially those from fireplace glass doors, are costly, painful and can require long term care. If your child has suffered a serious burn injury, please contact the highly experienced team of Gilbert, Ollanik & Komyatte for a free initial consultation.

Sources:
Jimenez & Montgomery “The Dangers of Glass Fireplace Doors From a Pediatric Perspective, The Children’s Hospital Aurora, 2009

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Posted In: Burn

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In San Francisco, California, a federal jury awarded a Bay Area musician $18 million for his auto products liability lawsuit against automaker Ford. 38-year-old resident Dax Pierson is now a quadriplegic because of injuries he sustained in a 2005 15-passenger van rollover accident involving a Ford vehicle.

According to Pierson’s California personal injury complaint, he sustained multiple spinal fractures when the E-350 van he was riding on Interstate 80 in Iowa rolled over 2 ½ times after striking black ice. Pierson, who was seated in the back passenger seat, struck his head on the roof after the seat became detached from the floor. He was using a seat belt. No one else sustained serious injuries during the crash.

During the auto products liability trial, Ford said that the van was not defective and fulfilled all industry requirements. Representatives for the car maker instead blamed the manager of Pierson’s band, Patrick Scott, for driving too fast. The jury, however, disagreed with Ford and awarded Pierson $6 million for pain and suffering and $12.3 million for medical costs.

Pierson founded the band Subtle and was its vocalist, keyboard player, and lead composer and arranger. Now, he uses special equipment that pushes buttons on a computer keyboard to compose and arrange his music. He also needs an attendant with him 24-hours a day.

In another California auto products liability lawsuit, a Los Angeles judge told Jaguar Land Rover that it must pay a now paralyzed man $21.1 million because the Land Rover Discovery SUV he was riding rolled over a number of times after it was struck by a teen driver who was driving at 80mph on the 118 freeway in 2003.

Sukhsagar Pannu, 53, sustained a catastrophic spinal cord injury from the SUV rollover accident. The former field hockey player can no longer utilize his legs and arms and he requires 24-hour care.

The judge says that the vehicle’s high gravity center made it prone to rollover accidents and the SUV’s roof collapsed too easily. Meantime, Jaguar Land Rover says it plans to appeal the verdict. Their lawyer says that the 16-year-old driver is the one that is at fault for causing Pannu’s catastrophic SUV rollover accident.

Paralyzed Oakland musician sues Ford, wins, SF Gate, May 29, 2009
Land Rover maker ordered to pay $21.1 million in rollover case, Los Angeles Times, May 28, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Rollover: The Hidden History of the SUV, PBS.org

15-Passenger Van Safety, NHTSA

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Posted In: 15-Passenger Vans , Automotive Product Liability , California , Sport Utility Vehicle Rollovers , States

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According to a federal appeals court, a Utah auto products liability lawsuit over a 2005 15-passenger van rollover accident that killed eight Utah State University students and one instructor and seriously injured two other students can proceed. The 15-passenger van complaint was filed in district court last year—but Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., the remaining defendant in the wrongful death case, had tried to get the case thrown out.

The tire company, which made the tires that were on the van, had expressed concern that certain information needed for the case would have exposed company secrets. The appeals court, however, says the plaintiffs are entitled to know how the tires were manufactured.

The students and their agriculture instructor were coming back to school after visiting a farm during a field trip when the deadly crash happened. The 15-passenger van rolled over a number of times after one of the tires blew out. The plaintiffs’ wrongful death complaint accuses Cooper Tire of knowing that the tire was defective yet failing to remedy the tire's defects.

The families of the victims that died settled their products liability complaint against Chrysler more than a year ago. The plaintiffs had accused the auto manufacturer of making a van with an unsafe gravity center, defective tires, and unsafe seat belts.

15-Passenger Vans
15-passenger vans have long been known for their high rollover risk because of the way they are designed. Last month, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued an advisory warning all 15-passenger van users to exercise the necessary safety precautions to prevent a rollover accident from happening. Recommendations include:

• Check tires for wear and tear, and make sure that they are properly inflated. Tires that are not fully inflated on a 15-passenger van is a common cause of rollover accidents, especially when the van is fully loaded.
• Ensure that everyone in the van is using a seat belt.
• Do not drive the van unless you are properly trained to operate this type of vehicle.

The NHTSA says that 15-passenger vans carrying 10 or more passengers have a rollover risk that is almost three times greater than vans carrying less than 5 passengers. This means that using a 15-passenger van the way that it was intended—to carry 15 passengers—places vehicle occupants at risk of getting injured in a rollover crash.

Cooper Tire told to supply information, UPI.com, June 10, 2009

Appeals court gets USU van lawsuit rolling again, The Salt Lake Tribune, June 6, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Fatalities to Occupants of 15-Passenger Vans, 2003 - 2007 (PDF)

15-Passenger Vans, IIHS

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Posted In: 15-Passenger Vans , Automotive Product Liability , Tires , Utah , Wrongful Death

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Last week, a number of car accident victims and their families traveled to Washington DC to ask lawmakers for help. As injured parties, they want to make sure that they will still receive compensation for their products liability and personal injury claims even though General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Bankruptcy proceedings generally place a temporary freeze on civil lawsuits, and plaintiffs end up becoming one of many unsecured creditors waiting to divide up whatever funds are left after the debts owed to secured creditors are paid off first. For auto products liability victims that were catastrophically injured in a GM or a Chrysler motor vehicle—and currently uninjured motorists that could get hurt in a defective GM or Chrysler car in the future—this outcome could pose a huge financial concern.

About 500 to 1,000 people are seriously injured or killed in auto products liability-related motor vehicle crashes each year. Approximately 300 Americans are currently suing Chrysler for products liability, and some 1,200 others are suing GM.

In New York, consumer groups are appealing the sale of Chrysler to Fiat because the new company isn’t going to be responsible for the old company’s losses, including personal injury settlements and verdicts. Center for Auto Safety Executive Director Clarence Ditlow wants the bankruptcy system or the Obama Administration to make sure that Chrysler and GM products liability victims and their families are taken care of. Meantime, the Center for Justice and Democracy want the two motor vehicle manufacturers to buy retroactive insurance polices that would cover past and future claims.

Among the victims that are fighting to recover the compensation they are owed:

• Couple Joseph and Jeanne Polio were hoping to obtain products liability compensation because Jeanne sustained catastrophic injuries during a 2005 rollover accident involving a Chrysler SUV. She now suffers from a spinal cord injury and is paralyzed from the waist down.

• 37-year-old Mark Noveck, who became a quadriplegic in a GM SUV rollover accident, settled his products liability lawsuit against the auto manufacturer right before the company filed for bankruptcy. His products liability lawyer says the $999,999 settlement was a form of “surrender” because it was better than possibly not getting anything.

Families and Severely-Injured Victims of Defective GM and Chrysler Cars Travel to Washington to Seek Urgent Help, Red Orbit, June 3, 2009

Chrysler bankruptcy stalls couple’s product liability case, NH Register, May 26, 2009

Injured little girl facing uphill fight in lawsuit against reeling GM, Daily News, May 26, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Chrysler Bankruptcy and Product Liability, NY Times, May 20, 2009

GM rescue dumps crash victims, Asiatimes.com, June 9, 2009

Continue reading "General Motors and Chrysler Bankruptcies: Consumer Groups Fight to Ensure Products Liability and Personal Injury Recovery " »

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Posted In: Automotive Product Liability

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According to SafeKids USA, the number one cause of injuries to kids ages 5 to 14 is playground accidents. About 150,000 children in this age group end up in US emergency rooms each year because of accidental injuries involving playground equipment. While some of these injury accidents involve playground equipment in private backyards, 3 out of 4 playground accidents occur on school grounds and in public areas.

A few months ago, the family of a boy who sustained a traumatic brain injury when he fell off playground equipment at a Burger King in 2005 received a $20 million injuries to children settlement. Defendants of the case included Burger King, the franchisee of the restaurant, and Delta Marketing Inc. The family’s playground accident lawsuit contended that the playground was made on a hard tile floor and no padding had been added to serve as a cushion during any potential fall accidents. The boy, who is now 12, continues to receive medical and nursing care for his severe TBI.

Even younger kids are prone to playground accidents. In 2006, a 15-month-old girl sustained second-degree burns on her feet when she stood on a metal plate covering a valve box in a California park’s water play area. Her family is suing the city of Yorba Linda, the metal plate maker, and other parties for the girl’s playground accident.

While the majority of playground accidents are not fatal—about 10 playground accident fatalities do occur a year. Also, fall accidents from playground equipment have been known to cause spinal cord injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and death.

Common causes of playground accidents:

• Poorly designed playground equipment
• Poorly constructed playgrounds
• Inadequate supervision
• Poor maintenance of playground or equipment

For more details about playground defects and other hazards that can exist on a playground, visit our Playground Injuries page for more information.

It is also important to monitor the Consumer Product Safety Commission Web site for news of playground equipment recalls. In April, SportsPlay Equipment announced the recall of a number of its playgrounds because their posts and handrails contained excessive levels of lead.

$20 million brain injury settlement names Riverside County Burger King, Justice.com, March 29, 2009

SportsPlay Equipment Recalls Playgrounds Due to Violation of Lead Paint Ban, CPSC, April 22, 2009

Family sues YC for toddler's burned feet, Appealdemocrat.com, May 14, 2009

No. 1 Cause of Injury in Elementary School: Playground Accidents, Safe Kids USA

Related Web Resources:
Playground Safety, Kidshealth.org

Playground Safety, National Safety Council

Continue reading "Playground Accidents Are Leading Cause of Injury to Elementary School Kids" »

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Posted In: Injuries to Children & Minors , Playground Products

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A tragic treadmill accident this week claimed the life of former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson’s 4-year-old daughter Exodus On Monday, her 7-year-old brother found her with the cord that hangs from a treadmill console wrapped around her neck. Following the strangulation accident, Exodus's mother tried to revive her with CPR while waiting for the paramedics to arrive at their home. The girl was then taken to a local hospital where she was placed on life support. Exodus died on Tuesday morning.

Treadmill Accidents
The US Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that every year, at least 2,600 kids are hurt in treadmill accidents end up in US emergency rooms. In Philadelphia alone, 12 children were injured in treadmill accidents in 2001—six of those injuries involved kids getting their hands stuck in the exercise machine’s belt. Their injuries were serious enough to require plastic surgery so they could open up their hands.

There also have been reports that hard edges, moving parts, and the programmed speeds of a treadmill can cause unexpected injuries to people. Researchers say that modifying treadmill designs, such as making the exercise machine harder to start and easier to stop, could prevent some of these accidents from happening.

The CPSC says that the treadmill is not the only kind of exercise equipment that has been known to cause injury to kids. Also:

• About 25,000 children under the age of 14 are injured on exercise equipment every year.
• Some 8,700 of these accidents involve kids younger than 5.
• Stationary bikes and stair climbers are two other kinds of exercise equipment that have been known to cause injuries to children.
• Amputations and fractures make up 20% of injuries to minors caused by exercise equipment.

While there are safety precautions that parents can take to protect their kids from getting hurt on a treadmill or another kind of exercise equipment, it is still up to the equipment manufacturer to make sure that their products do not have any design defects or manufacturing flaws that could cause cause injury or death if the equipment malfunctions. Warning of any potential hazards that may arise must be included with the product when it is delivered to the consumer.

Tyson's Tragedy Shows Treadmill Danger, ABC News, May 27, 2009

Kids and treadmills: a bad combination, TampaBay.com, May 28, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Exercise (And Children On Exercise Machines), UAB Health Systems

CPSC

Continue reading "Treadmill Accident: Mike Tyson’s Daughter Dies After Her Neck Gets Caught in Exercise Machine Cord " »

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Posted In: Furniture and Accessories , Household Appliances , Injuries to Children & Minors

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With summer fast approaching, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission has revealed its latest figures on child drowning injuries and deaths in pools and spas. According to the CPSC, almost 300 children under age 5 drown in spas and pools annually, while 3,000 young kids sustain injuries that require emergency medical attention. Also:

• 2/3rds of the victims killed or injured in pools and spas are toddlers, ages 1-2.
• 80% of drowning deaths take place in residential settings.
• Between 1999 to 2008, 69 injuries and 11 deaths occurred due to spa and pool entrapment accidents.

Last December, the Federal Pool and Spa Safety Act went into effect. The new law makes it a requirement for all public spas and pools to install drains that prevent drain entrapment accidents from happening. The drains are arched and designed to prevent a person’s hair or another body part from getting suctioned into the drain.

In 2007, 6-year-old Abigail Taylor sustained a catastrophic injury when the drain of the wading pool she was in suctioned out a portion of her intestinal tract. She had to undergo transplants of the small bowel, pancreas, and liver and could only be fed through an intravenous tube. She died from her pool drain injuries last March.

The new pool spa and safety act is also known as the Virginia Graham Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act. The law is named after former Secretary of State James Baker’s granddaughter. Virginia was just 7 when she drowned after getting caught in a spa’s suction. Unfortunately, there are pools and spas in the US that have yet to install these new drains because they have not been easily available.

There are also the dangers that pools and spas can pose because the owner failed to surround the pool or hottub with a protective barrier designed to prevent children from getting into the water unsupervised or to provide proper supervision or adequate safety measures for when people are in the pool or spa.

When you think about the fact that a child can easily drown in as little as two inches of water, our personal injury law firm, known for our work with injuries to children and minors cases, cannot do enough to emphasize the importance of making sure that the proper safety precautions are in place to prevent tragic drowning deaths. Even a near-drowning accident can prove catastrophic, with many children that survive forced to live with permanent brain damage.

CPSC Announces New Report on Child Drownings and Near-Drownings in Pools and Spas, CPSC, May 21, 2009

Pool drains pose risk to swimmers, NewsChannelKTIV, May 13, 2009

Girl Whose Intestines Were Partially Sucked Out by Swimming Pool Drain Dies, Fox News, March 21, 2008

Related Web Resources:
Virginia Graeme Baker Pool Spa and Safety Act (PDF)

Keep an Eye on your Kids, Drowning is Preventable!, WestCov.org

Continue reading "CPSC: Almost 300 US Children Under Age 5 Drown in Pools and Spas Each Year" »

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Posted In: Injuries to Children & Minors , Swimming Pools

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The Obama Administration’s recent unveiling of a new fuel economy and emissions initiative is raising some issues of concern over whether the proposed changes will compromise auto safety. If finalized, the initiative would establish a fuel economy standard of 35.5 mph by 2016. Vehicle categories covered under this joint rulemaking put forth by the Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency include sport utility vehicles, passenger cars, pickup trucks, and minivans—autos that account for nearly 60% of greenhouse gas emissions.

In a USA Today article, former Office of Management and Budget rulemaking chief John Graham expressed concern that automakers, already financially strapped, might have to compromise safety in order to meet the initiative’s deadlines and, for example, make smaller, less safe cars. This solution could have huge ramifications on people's lives.

Recent studies conducted by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety showed that bigger and heavier cars still have the advantage over their smaller vehicle counterparts when it comes to protecting vehicle occupants during an auto crash. If safety is compromised in any way, there is concern that this could reverse the decline in the number of motor vehicle deaths that the US has experienced recently. Last year's US traffic death rate is expected to be even lower than 2007's traffic death rate.

White House Office of Energy and Climate Change Director Carol Browner disagrees with these concerns and says that car makers can use new technologies to meet the new fuel standards. Many environmentalists agree with the Obama Administration and say that car makers will merely have to create better vehicle designs and use lighter materials to make their autos.

However, these new approaches could cost more money that currently is in such short supply among even the biggest players in the auto industry that the government has had to provide financial assistance. Just this week, the Obama Administration announced a $7.5 billion bailout to GMAC, which is the auto lender to Chrysler and GMC. This is in addition to the $6 billion that GMAC already received under the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Meantime, the federal government has had to take the costs of auto safety into account. For example, the Bush Administration delayed the release of new federal standards mandating stronger car roofs that can withstand more weight during an auto crash over concern that they would be too expensive for car makers to implement. The tougher roof standards were finally announced last month.

Auto Products Liability
Vehicle occupant safety must remain a primary priority for car makers when they are designing and manufacturing their motor vehicles. If your injuries or your loved one’s death was the result of an auto defect, you should speak with our auto products liability law firm today.

Safety could suffer if we boost mileage by making cars smaller, USA Today, May 20, 2009

Notice of Upcoming Joint Rulemaking to Establish Vehicle GHG Emissions and CAFE Standards, NHTSA, May 19, 2009

New Emissions Changes May Not Be Safe, KIMA TV, May 21, 2009

Another $7.5 billion bailout for GMAC, CNN.com, May 21, 2009

Related Web Resources:
IIHS Crash Tests Reveal that Bigger and Heavier Motor Vehicles Exhibit Greater Occupant Protection During Auto Collisions

Read the Notice of Intent for the Rulemaking, NHTSA (PDF)

Continue reading "Auto Products Liability: Will New Fuel Economy Standard Compromise Vehicle Safety?" »

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Posted In: Automotive Product Liability

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According to the US Department of Transportation, each year 22,372 serious injuries and 1,652 traffic deaths could be prevented by the use of seat belts, which reportedly saved 15,147 lives in 2007, if seat belt use rates in each use state was at 90%. US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood calls safety belt use the “most effective traffic safety device every invented.”

To show people how serious safety and transportation officials throughout the US are about promoting the use of safety belts, the “Click It or Ticket” campaign will take place this year from May 18 – 31. Over 10,000 police agencies are expected to patrol the streets to catch and cite people that are caught not using seat belts when riding in motor vehicles.

Currently, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration National Occupant Protection Use Survey reports that the seat belt use rate for 2008 was 83%. However, one out of every five Americans still does not buckle up.

Teens are an age group of special concern. 2,502 of the 4,540 16-20 year old auto occupant victims that died in 2007 were not using seatbelts. 65% of the teen drivers that died in nighttime car accidents that year were not using seat belts.

Defective Seat Belts
In order for seat belt use to save lives and prevent serious injuries, the safety belt must be free from defects so that it works properly. Unfortunately, seat belt defects do occur and car makers have been known to recall vehicles because of defective safety belts. Also, injury victims and the surviving families of those who have died because a seat belt malfunctioned or had a defect have sought products liability and wrongful death recovery from the negligent manufacturers.

Recently, a woman who became paralyzed in a 2006 Colorado rollover accident was awarded a $4.23 million seatbelt defect judgment against Ford Co. Erica Hoffman’s auto products liability lawsuit contended that the seat belt was faulty and that it came unlatched during the auto accident.

A Colorado jury awarded Hoffman $18 million, assigning 25% of the liability to Ford. She also settled with TRW Automotive Safety Systems Inc, the company that made the seat belt, as well as the driver of the 1999 Ford Mercury Cougar Coupe that was involved in her rollover accident.

Car makers and seat belt manufacturers must be held liable for negligence when they make and install safety belts that are defective. Vehicle occupants rely on safety belts to keep them secure in the event of a motor vehicle crash. A seat belt that doesn’t work properly can cause a vehicle occupant to hit his or her head against the windows or roof of a car. He or she can also get thrown out of the vehicle. A person whose seat belt unlatches during an auto accident could end up with a traumatic brain injury, a spinal cord injury, or massive internal injuries that might otherwise have been prevented.

New Study: Higher Seat Belt Use Could Save Many Lives, NHTSA, May 14, 2009

Woman wins $4.23 million from Ford in lawsuit, Examiner.com, May 1, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Click it or Ticket, NHTSA

Seat Belt Use in 2008 - Use Rates in the States and Territories (PDF)

Continue reading "Nationwide “Click It or Ticket” Campaign A Reminder of How Seat Belts—When Defect-Free—Can Save Lives" »

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Posted In: Automotive Product Liability , Colorado , Defective Seatbelt and Restraint System Cases , Seat Belts , States

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A California family is suing Toyota for wrongful death. The Benson family contends that the car manufacturer failed to properly notify them that the steering relay rod in their motor vehicle was defective and, as a result, their 18-month-old toddler died in an auto crash.

The deadly California car accident occurred on Christmas Eve in 1997 when the steering relay rod, which connects the two wheels, broke and Cindi Benson lost control of the vehicle. The Toyota went off the road and hit a tree. Lilian Benson died from her injuries on Christmas day. Her siblings, Frank Benson, then 4, and Laquita Benson, then 7, sustained injuries.

This is not the first auto products liability lawsuit to be filed against Toyota over a defective steering relay rod. Earlier this year, the parents of Levi Stewart sued the car maker for failing to issue a recall in the 90’s over the faulty auto part. A recall was eventually issued the following decade but only at first in Japan.

Stewart, 18, died on September 15, 2007 when the steering relay rod of his Toyota pickup truck broke and he lost control of the vehicle. Friends who were in the truck with him sustained serious injuries. Stewart's father, Mike Stewart, did not receive a notice from Toyota that the 1991 truck may have contained a defective part until three month's after his son's death.

Toyota issued its recall of the defective steering relay rod in the US in 2005. A letter sent that year by Toyota’s North American subsidiary to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration noted that there could be 977,839 motor vehicles affected by the defective auto part, including the:

• Toyota 4Runner, 1989 to 1995 models
• Toyota Truck, 1989 to 1995 models
• Toyota T100, 1993 to 1998 models

The Benson family’s California wrongful death attorney says that only about 30% of the cars had been repaired a year and a half after the recall was announced and not everyone was properly notified about the recall. Usually, a repair of approximately 70% of the vehicles that are part of a recall is considered the pass/fail rate.

Other auto products liability lawsuits have been filed by families in Louisiana and Kentucky.

Humboldt family says faulty Toyota car part resulted in baby's death, Times-Standard, May 11, 2009

Idaho family sues after son dies in recalled Toyota, KTVB, March 26, 2009

Related Web Resources:
Auto Recalls, Justia

Toyota

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Posted In: Automotive Product Liability , California , Idaho , Kentucky , Louisiana , Wrongful Death

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