An Ontario, California boat manufacturer has been ordered to pay $4.3 million to Stacey Lowry. The Chino Hills resident lost her leg in an August 4, 2004 boating accident in Lake Havasu. According to an article in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, Lowry filed the product liability lawsuit against Johnson Marine Supplies Inc. a year after the 8/4/2004 accident.

The accident occurred when Lowry’s husband, Paul, had tried to put the throttle of the boat in reverse. The boat then surged causing it to hit a cement sea wall. Stacey Lowry’s leg was crushed and as a result, had to be amputated. Lowry’s lawsuit alleged that the boat had a defective retainer clip that was not installed properly.

Machinery and equipment failure are listed among the top 10 primary contributing factors for boating accidents, according to a report released by the U.S. Coast Guard in 2007. In the case of this Lake Havasu boating accident, a product defect caused the mechanical malfunction and crash that led to Lowry’s injuries.

I’m pleased that Stacey Lowry was compensated appropriately for her severe injuries. Product liability claims compensate victims not only for their loss and injuries, but also pain, suffering, emotional distress and loss of wages as a result of the injuries. This jury verdict is appropriate not only because it spells justice for the injured victim, but also because it will warn other boaters about this particular product defect. According to court documents, there are thousands of boats on the water with the same defective clip that caused this boating accident. Hopefully this verdict will bring attention to the danger this poses to boaters.

The Ontario-based company, Johnson Marine Supplies Inc., should be recalling these boats with the defective clips and repair them free of charge for consumers. It is their responsibility to make sure their customers are no longer exposed to the hazard. Just as in this case, this boating manufacturer can be held liable for other injuries and/or deaths that occur because of this problem. It is in their best interest to fix this problem before more consumers are injured or killed as a result of this serious product defect.