Product Defect Liability Lawyer Blog

A Costa Mesa family lost their pet in a fire on December 27, 2008, which officials say was caused by a space heater. According to a CBS News report, the fire broke out in the rear unit of a residential duplex on the 200 block of Magnolia Street. The residents and their guests were uninjured and were able to make it out of the house, but the family’s dog was killed in the fire.

Costa Mesa fire officials say the space heater certainly caused the blaze, but they are trying to look at whether the heater had been placed too close to any flammable materials or whether the space heater was defective or malfunctioning. Investigators are estimating the damage from the fire at $450,000, which includes a vehicle in the garage.

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A New Jersey appellate court has reinstated a claim that a design defect caused a 2000 Ford Explorer sport utility vehicle to roll over and crash, causing serious injuries to the driver. Ford had previously won the case in trial court after Ford presented evidence that the injured driver, Patricio Paredes, caused the SUV rollover crash by over-correcting the steering, which they said would have caused any vehicle to roll over. Our source for this blog was this news report in the New Jersey Law Journal.

The appellate court ordered a retrial stating that the trial judge did not inform jurors that the evidence of the driver’s alleged negligence had nothing to do with the primary issue in this case - which was if the Explorer’s design was defective. The trial judge would have needed to give the jury such specific instructions had Ford asserted “contributory negligence,” which basically means that the driver caused the crash and would have crashed irrespective of what vehicle he was driving. But Ford abandoned the contributory negligence assertion before trial.

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Munire Furniture is recalling about 9,000 cribs and other matching pieces of furniture in its “Newport Rubbed Black” series after receiving one report of a child ingesting lead paint on the furniture. The child was diagnosed with lead poisoning. The red paint which is under the black finish paint on some of the cribs and matching furniture apparently exceeds federal lead limits. If young children ingest the paint, it can cause adverse health effects including brain damage. Our source for this blog was this news report on Consumeraffairs.com.

The recalled cribs and furniture are made of wood and have a rubbed black finish. These lead-tainted products were manufactured in Indonesia and sold in stores nationwide between April 2006 and November 2008 for between $700 and $1,000. The accessories were sold for about $170. The model number, date and country of manufacture are printed on the label attached to the side panel of the crib. The date of manufacture is on the back panel of the cribs. For a complete list of the furniture models included in this recall, please visit the company’s Web site at www.munirefurniture.com.

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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is warning consumers about 25 different diet supplements marketed for weight loss because they can pose extremely serious health risks to those who use them. According to this news report, these diet pills contain ingredients that are not approved for use in the United States. Some of the effects that have been reported are high blood pressure, seizures and strokes. These products are apparently marketed as “dietary supplements” and sold on various Web sites and in retail stores.

The weight loss products that are apparently contaminated with, what the federal agency calls, “undeclared active pharmaceutical ingredients” include: Fatloss Slimming, Japan Lingzhi 24 Hours Diet, 2 Day Diet, 3x Slimming Power, 5x Imelda Perfect Slimming, 3 Day Diet, 7 Day Herbal Slim, 8 Factor Diet, 7 Diet Day/Night Formula, 999 Fitness Essence, Extrim Plus, GMP, Imelda Perfect Slim, Lida DaiDaihua, Miaozi Slim Capsules, Perfect Slim, Perfect Slim 5x, Phyto Shape, ProSlim Plus, Royal Slimming Formula, Slim 3 in 1, Slim Express 360, Slimtech, Somotrim, Superslim, TripleSlim, Zhen de Shou, and Venom Hyperdrive 3.0.

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The family of 6-month-old Kennedy Brotherton Jones has sued the Walt Disney Company for its defective bassinets. The family lost their young child this year after he was strangled to death in his Winnie the Pooh bassinet. The family is alleging that the company allowed the sales of these bassinets in spite of knowing that the bassinet’s defective design had been linked to another baby’s strangulation one year ago. According to this news report in the Chicago Tribune, the defective bassinets had a drop-down side for easy access, but that design created a space where infants could slide through and become strangled.

Kennedy Brotherton Jones died on August 21, 2008 after which the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission directed retailers nationwide to stop selling these bassinets manufactured by Simplicity Inc. Disney’s consumer products division apparently licensed its Winnie the Pooh name and image to Simplicity. Kennedy’s family filed the lawsuit in California State Court in Los Angeles.

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Evenflo Co. Inc. has recalled nearly 100,000 of its Majestic high chairs after receiving reports that children were getting injured as a result of parts falling off the defective high chairs. According to this MSNBC news report, the voluntary recall came after reports of dozens of injuries to children when the seatbacks fell off. Injuries to children ranged from broken bones to head bruises.

In addition to the fall hazard, the plastic screws and metal screws on both sides of the high chair can also fall out, posing a choking hazard to children. According to this Consumer Reports Web site, Evenflo received more than 1,000 reports of plastic caps and screws falling out of the high chairs, including seven incidents in which caps and screws were found in children’s hands or mouths, but were removed before the choking occurred.

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Cooper Tire is recalling its CS4 Touring (VR) tires, which are said to be defective because they can lead to tire tread separation and cause a serious auto accident. According to this news report on Consumeraffairs.com, these defective tires were apparently cured for an inadequate amount of time. This condition could lead to tire tread separation, which could cause a motorist to lose control of the vehicle and thereby result in a crash.

The recalled tires are size 215/55R17, manufactured between September 7, 2008 and October 11, 2008. Cooper Tire will notify owners and replace, mount and balance any of these defective tires without any charge to the consumer. Dealers will first examine suspect tires to check whether they are part of the recalled batch of tires. This tire recall is expected to begin this month. Consumers who seek more information are asked to call Cooper Tire Consumer Relations at 1-800-854-6288 or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at 1-888-327-4236. You could also visit the NHTSA’s Web site at www.safercar.gov.

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Britax is recalling its Frontier child restraint systems because of a problem with its harness straps. According to this news report on Consumeraffairs.com, if the harness straps are loosened using one strap at a time, the straps may become detached from the metal yoke located on the back of the child seat. Should these harness straps become detached, the child will not be properly restrained in the car seat posing an increased risk of injury or death in the event of an auto accident.

The models being affected by this car seat recall include: E9L54E7 (Frontier Red Rock), E9L54H6 (Frontier Rushmore), E9L54H7 (Frontier Pink Sky), E9L54M6 (Frontier Canyon), and E9L5490 (Frontier Sahara). All of these models were manufactured between April and September of 2008. Consumers who own these defective car seats will be getting notification from the manufacturer. All registered owners will also get remedy kits free of charge. Those who have not registered their car seats are asked to call Britax at 1-704-409-1700 to request their complimentary kit.

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Child car seat manufacturer Graco is recalling nearly 44,000 Comfortsport convertible child car seats in the Frazier Fashion line. These car seats apparently come with a large, supplemental pad or body pillow that partially obscures the child airbag warning label which is on the seat pad. This is a violation of federal safety standards because serious injury or even death could occur should the child car seat be placed improperly in the vehicle. Our source for this blog is this news report on Consumeraffairs.com.

Once the recall begins, Graco will notify owners of these products to discard the body pillows. These pads are provided for comfort only and do not affect the seat’s ability to protect the child in the event of an auto accident. These car seats were manufactured from November 1, 2006 through October 8, 2007. Those with more questions are asked to call Graco at 1-800-345-4109 or e-mail consumerservices@gracobaby.com.

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Dill Air Control Products is recalling its snap-in rubber tire valves sold between November 2006 and July 2007, according to this news report on Consumeraffairs.com. Apparently, these defective tire valve systems may lack the required additive to protect the rubber against deterioration from ozone exposure. What that means is that the affected valve systems may weather and crack sooner than expected. And over time, such a crack could cause air to leak resulting in loss of tire pressure. Such loss in tire pressure can result in a flat tire or a sudden tire blowout and cause the driver to lose control of the vehicle and crash.

Consumers who purchased tires between November 2006 and July 2007 whose valve systems contain the Dill cap, should have the valve stems inspected for cracks in the rubber. This recall is for models APC TR413, TR414 and TR418. Tire dealers will inspect the Dill valve stems and replace them if cracked, free of charge. The dealer will then file a claim with Dill. If you would like to have more information about this product recall, please call 1-888-364-2982 or visit www.tirevalverecall.net. You may also call the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at 1-888-327-4236 or visit their Web site at www.safercar.gov.

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A Los Angeles federal court judge ruled on December 9, 2008 that toymakers and retailers whose products contain lead and small parts dangerous to young children cannot escape liability just because they offered danger-free replacements. According to this Associated Press news report, U.S. District Court Judge Dale S. Fischer ruled that efforts made by toy manufacturers and retailers to issue voluntary recalls of dangerous and defective toys did not preclude plaintiffs in a class-action lawsuit from seeking damages.

Judge Fischer said these companies will not be shielded from liability even if they recalled the toys and handed out lead-free replacements. Plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit included parents from San Diego, New York and Seattle who bought these toys, which were marketed and sold as safe, but later recalled because they contained excessive levels of lead. Most of these toys were made in China. Mattel recalled 20 million toys worldwide including a lot of famous brands because the surface paint on them contained too much lead. Excessive levels of lead cause serious brain damage in young children and have several long-term health effects.

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Land Rover is recalling about 19,000 Land Rovers and Range Rovers from the 2003 to 2005 model years to fix faulty drive shafts. According to this news report on Consumeraffairs.com, the front differential coupling sleeve and the propeller shaft in these vehicles may be misaligned, causing excessive wear. Over a period of time, as the wear progresses, the driver may notice noise and vibration. Continuing to drive the vehicle after that point could result in a crash.

Owners of these recalled vehicles are asked to take them to dealers, who will install a revised design of the propeller shaft, the flange kit and heat shield kit. This recall begins on January 6, 2009. Owners with questions are asked to call Land Rover at 313-594-7688 or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration at 1-888-327-4236. You may also visit NHTSA’s Web site at www.safercar.gov.

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I came across this great story of a dad in New Jersey who fought for the recall of dangerous and defective cribs and may have saved children’s lives in the process. According to this Consumer Reports Safety Blog, Andrew Hartung and his wife, Carolyn, woke up one night to the shrieking of their 14-month-old daughter Abigail. The toddler had her fingers trapped in a gap between the crib’s top rails.

After freeing his daughter, Andrew Hartung inspected the crib and found the bolts at the corners of the crib had come loose, creating the gap. On closer inspection, he also discovered that the bolt holes had been drilled too closely to the edge causing the wood to split. Hartung immediately called Bassettbaby, the company that sold these “Made in China” cribs. Hartung feared that other babies may get injured or worse, killed, because of these defective products. But a company vice-president apparently told him that they had never gotten any complaints about their product and weren’t going to take any action.

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General Motors has issued a recall of about 2,100 Saturn Vue sport utility vehicles from the 2009 model year because of a problem with the steering linkage. According to this report on Consumeraffairs.com, GM officials said that some of these SUVs might have been built with an incorrect steering knuckle, which could cause the tie rod ball to pull out of the rod housing. This error could cause the affected wheel to turn out and skid.

In some of these recalled vehicles, both assemblies may be defective, which means that the driver would lose steering control of the vehicle. The recall is expected to begin on December 8, 2008. Dealers will inspect the steering knuckles and if necessary, replace both the knuckles and the rods. Owners who require more information are asked to call Saturn at 1-800-972-8876 or visit GM’s Web site at www.gmownercenter.com. If you own one of these vehicles, you may also want to call the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at 1-888-327-4236 or visit www.safercar.gov, for more information.

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General Motors is recalling about 16,000 2009 models of its Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Traverse, GMC Acadia and Saturn Outlook vehicles because of a defective rear seat restraint system assembly. The defective seat restraint system assembly could result in seatbelt failure in the event of a crash. These sport utility vehicles may have been built with a safety belt buckle in the second or third row that is missing a rivet. In such cases, the buckle could separate from the mounting strap leaving the occupant unprotected during an auto accident. Our source for this blog is this news report on Consumeraffairs.com.

The recall began on November 26, 2008. If you own one of these SUVs, you should receive notification of this recall in the mail. Consumers are asked to take their vehicles in to dealers, who will inspect the seatbelt buckles and replace them if necessary. Those in need of more information are asked to contact Chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438 or visit the company’s Web site at www.gmownercenter.com. Consumers may also contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at 1-888-327-4236 or visit the federal agency’s Web site at www.safercar.gov.

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Target has recalled about 365,000 defective dive sticks because of an impalement hazard to children. According to a U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission alert, the dive sticks can remain in an upright position posing an impalement hazard to young children.

The recalled dive sticks were sold in a bundle of three in multiple colors: light blue, aqua green, fluorescent yellow, royal blue and red. The tag on the sticks reads “Dive Toys” or “Diving Game” and has a white small parts warning label in the upper right corner. These products were manufactured in China and sold exclusively at Target stores nationwide from April 2008 through August 2008 for about $1. Consumers who own these dive sticks are asked to immediately take them away from young children and return them to any Target store for a complete refund. Those in need of more information are asked to call Target toll-free at 1-800-440-0680 or visit the company’s Web site at www.target.com.

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