Defective Products

A manufacturer that receives reports from consumers that they have been injured by their product is supposed to report that to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) within 24 hours after receiving credible information that the defective product presents a hazard of injury or death. In the case of Spin Master, Inc. of Los Angeles, the mandatory reporting didn’t happen; thus, the company has agreed to pay a civil fine of $1.3 million, a civil penalty agreement reached with the CPSC and announced on Thursday, October 27.

Spin Master made the product Aqua Dots, which was recalled after they were found to contain toxic and banned hazardous materials in the arts and crafts beads within the kit.

By October 2007, the company had received reports that children and a dog had ingested the beads and become ill, and in the following weeks more reports came in of illness and more emergency medical treatment that was needed as a result. Spin Master still did not report the consumer calls as required under federal law.

The company also allegedly learned that the dots contain 1,4-butylene glycol (TMG) which is harmful to the central nervous system and kidneys, depresses the respiratory system, and can cause seizures. Some of the injury reports to the company were about hospitalized children who were in a coma.

By November 2007, the CPSC had received its own illness reports about Aqua Dots and recalled 4.2 million of the defective craft games.

If a defective product creates an unreasonable risk to consumers, the CPSC can order a recall and fine the company that fails to report a substantial product hazard. An experienced Florida product liability law firm can also file an action to seek compensation based on a defect of the product in its manufacturing, its design, or in a failure to warn if that defective product causes harm to a consumer.

Source: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/spin-master-agrees-to-13-million-civil-penalty-for-failing-to-report-aqua-dots-and-for-selling-a-banned-hazardous-substance-132683928.htmlZ

The widower of a Florida physician who was strangled when her necklace became entangled in a neck massager filed a lawsuit in Miami-Dade court Tuesday, August 30. The lawsuit contends the death could have been prevented if the defective device had a safety mechanism and proper labeling.

The doctor, a radiologist at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, died in her Parkland, Florida home last Christmas Eve after wrapping presents. Using the ShoulderFlex Deep Kneading shiatsu massager, the rotating head caught a leather cord in her necklace and she choked to death. The negligence lawsuit says the device makers should have installed an automatic break to stop the rotating knobs when it detected resistance. And it argues the defective product did not contain obvious labeling to warn users of the dangers of the device.

A label was added August 25, warning of the risk of death and injury and on Wednesday, August 31, about 12,000 ShoulderFlex massagers were recalled.

The FDA says there have been four reports of the device catching on hair, clothing, and jewelry and one other person has been injured. A related death was reported overseas linked to a different brand. A foot massager had to be recalled in Japan in 2008 after three people accidentally strangled themselves when they used it as a neck massager.

The woman had a two-year-old son who will hopefully be compensated for his mother’s death. The defendants are King International, the distributor, the creators and patent holders and the national retailer that sold the product at the Relax the Back stores.

Farah & Farah’s product liability attorneys in Orlando understand that financial compensation will never make up for the loss of a loved one, but the compensation can partially replace what that deceased parent can no longer provide. A product liability lawsuit also tells the manufacturer and distributor that they cannot put dangerous and defective products on the market and they need to take their responsibility to the public seriously.

Source: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/broward/fl-neck-massager-lawsuit-20110902,0,7352813.story

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) along with Health Canada and in cooperation with Office Depot announced on Thursday, August 18, the recall of 34,000 defective office chairs in the U.S. and 425 in Canada because of a pinch hazard. Consumers are advised to stop using the chairs immediately. It is illegal to attempt to resell a recalled product.

The chairs are called Realspace PRO 3000 Series and they were imported from China by Office Depot of Boca Raton, Florida. The problem with the defective chair is that a user’s finger can be trapped in the tilt mechanism and injured. One consumer reportedly called into Office Depot reporting that was exactly what happened to him.

Not sure if you have this chair model? Look at the bottom and find the SKU number of 996-190. The office chairs were made between March 2009 and May 2011 and sold through June of this year for about $170. Consumers who own this chair are advised to stop using them and call Office Depot for a free repair kit that covers the tilt mechanism. Before calling, write down the P.O. number on the underside of the chair. The number is toll free (855) 259-5093 or visit http://www.officedepot.com/customerservice/errata.do.

If you are injured by a defective product, Florida product liability law allows you to hold a manufacturer, seller, wholesaler, or the designer liable for putting a defective product into commerce. If the product is defective, any person who forseeably could be injured and is injured can recover medical costs and pain and suffering, as long as they were sold the product. The attorneys at Farah & Farah will offer you a complimentary consultation to discuss the specifics of your situation and provide you with legal options.

Source: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml11/11309.html?tab=recalls

California-based fitness company Perfect Fitness has agreed to pay a $425,000 civil penalty for failing to disclose to federal regulators at the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) a defect with its Perfect Pullup exercise equipment. The CPSC alleges that the handle of the product breaks during use and can injure consumers. Allegedly Perfect Fitness of Sausalito knew about the defect in June 2008 after it had received a complaint and a number of returned products. Then the company allegedly tested the product and redesigned it to correct the defect.

The company placed a notice on their website that consumers could get free replacement handles after it became aware of at least 23 injuries by March 2010. Finally in December 2010 the firm reported the defective product to the CPSC. By that time there were at least 45 complaints of injury and 2,000 requests for replacements.

Seven-thousand units of Perfect Pullup were recalled in February 2011. The CPSC is still interested in taking in any accident and injury reports with the Perfect Pullup. Contact the CPSC at SaferProducts.gov.or call the CPSC Recall Hotline at 800-638-2772.

Manufacturers have a responsibility to make sure the product they sell is safe for the public. Under federal law, a manufacturer or retailer is supposed to report to the CPSC immediately after finding out that the product is defective and can injure consumers. Perfect Fitness denies it knowingly violated the law but has agreed to the civil penalty.

If you are injured by a defective product, the Florida product liability attorneys at Farah & Farah will always be available to discuss your injuries and help determine if you have a viable case to file against the manufacturer or distributor of the dangerous and defective product.

Source: http://www.fairwarning.org/2011/08/prodded-to-shape-up-seller-of-flawed-fitness-gear-agrees-to-425000-penalty/

One of the foundations of filing a product liability lawsuit is that the product must be defective in its manufacture, its design, or in failing to alert the public to the potential for danger. According to the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), Maryland-based Black & Decker Inc., will pay $960,000 to settle claims that it was not forthcoming about a defective weed trimmer and failed to report several safety defects and hazards that led to injuries.

The product in question is the Grasshog XP model weed trimmer and the CPSC says the company withheld information as investigators tried to uncover reports of injury. There were about 158 people injured by the weed trimmer between 2005 and 2009, reports Bloomberg. Black & Decker knew the Grasshog was defective as early as May 2006, says the agency, but didn’t report the mounting number of injuries.

The weed trimmer was finally recalled in July 2007 and by then there were more than 700 reports or “incidents” and 58 injuries. Consumers were injured when the trimmer string, the spool or cap came loose and became a powerful projectile. In addition, the Grasshog was known to overheat and cause burns on users. Finally when 100 more consumer injuries were reported, the Grasshog was re-recalled in August 2009.

Under Florida product liability law, if a product does not meet the ordinary expectations of the consumer because it is defective and dangerous and that defect injures a user, the consumer can file a product liability claim.

The consumer can claim a breach of warranty, negligence or strict liability and can receive compensation for their pain and suffering, the loss of a loved one, medical bills and the replacement of lost income. The Jacksonville product liability attorneys at Farah & Farah are dedicated to helping get defective product off the market and to punish the companies that knowingly market them. Call us at 1-800-533-3555 so we can begin the conversation concerning your case.

Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-08-03/black-decker-fined-960-000-by-cpsc-for-grasshog-reports.html

This report from Dow Jones indicates more woes for drug maker Merck. Specifically some bits of plastic in the form of shrink wrap have been found inside vials of vaccines made by Merck. The company says it is working to resolve the defective vaccines and that it is not aware of any instances of injury from the plastic bits. The defective vaccines were made at Merck’s biggest plant in West Point, Pennsylvania which was the subject of a 2008 letter from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) about quality control problems included metal particles found in products and cracks found in vaccine vials.

The vaccines for Gardasil, Varivax, Pneumovax and Zostavax are all affected. The protective shrink wrap was initially used to cover glass vials and it reportedly was not removed before a heated sterilization process. The FDA has received at least a dozen reports of the plastic wrap found inside vaccines. Eight customer complaints were made to the FDA and Merck found four contaminated vials when it tested samples.

Merck’s 2010 vaccine sales amounted to $3.8 billion according to Dow Jones, so this finding is not a small revelation. Vaccine sales represent about eight percent of company sales.

In a separate action, Johnson & Johnson has had problems with its Fort Washington, Pennsylvania plant, which remains closed after FDA inspectors found unsanitary conditions and contaminated products. Insiders comment that aging equipment and budget cuts have contributed to compromises in quality.

Merck is lucky that plastic bits found in vials have not been injected into patients. An injured patient could file a product liability claim against Merck for such poor quality control. Merck says the problem is under control – it’s shifted to cardboard vial holders and only one in six million vials have been affected. Doctors had complained to Merck in the past about bubbling and foaming observed in certain vaccine vials. The FDA says Merck could have done more to investigate metal particles and cracked vials found in its facility in the past.

Sources: http://www.pharmalot.com/2011/07/is-that-plastic-shrink-wrap-in-your-merck-vaccine/#more-34018 and http://www.nasdaq.com/aspx/stock-market-news-story.aspx?storyid=201107281824dowjonesdjonline000835&title=update-fda-faults-merck-plant-for-charred-shrink-wrap-in-vaccine-vials

An alert has been issue to parents who feed their children apple juice – a kid favorite. America exports its toxic agricultural chemicals to countries like China, and then imports foods that are produced with the chemicals. The result, as found by the Washington D.C.-based consumer group Food and Water Watch (F&WW), is that arsenic has been found in Mott’s Apple Juice at 55 parts per billion (ppb), well in excess of what is allowed in public drinking water (10 parts per billion) in the U.S.

F&WW is asking Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Margaret Hamburg to establish levels for heavy metals in apple juice, largely consumed by children. What’s frightening is that 70 percent of the apple juice imported in the country comes from the People’s Republic of China, a country with little to no environmental standards, according to F&WW. Arsenic is used as an insecticide in farming in China. The FDA inspects less than two percent of imported foods.

F&WW began drawing attention to potential dangers of foods from China last month, especially juice, candy, and canned fruit consumed by American children. According to the group, China’s food exports to the U.S. have tripled over the past decade to nearly 4 billion pounds of food in 2010 with a value of $5 billion. Even an investigation by The St. Petersburg Times last year found Motts, Apple & Eve Organics, and Walmart’s Great Value apple juice had between 25 and 35 ppb of arsenic, above the 23 ppb level that the FDA had previously expressed as a level of concern.

Sources: http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2011/07/arsenic-laced-apple-juice-flowing-from-china/ and http://www.tampabay.com/news/health/article1079395.ece

L’Oreal likes to say its products are expensive “But you’re worth it!” Well a number of consumers of a L’Oreal leave-in hair product think they’ve received a false promise and no warning that it can catch fire when in contact with most hair styling appliances. Two women are at the head of a federal class action lawsuit, reports Consumer Affairs. The product in question is the “leave-in” hair-styling product, Garnier Fructis Sleek & Shine Anti-Frizz Serum. In the lawsuit, attorneys for the women say the main ingredients are flammable with a flash point of only 171 degrees. A curling iron or styling tool can easily reach between 200 and 450 degrees, says the complaint.

“Serum is therefore flammable and is unsafe to bring into contact with heated styling appliances because use of the product with a heated styling appliances puts the consumer at an unreasonable risk of injury from burns to the face, head and neck,” the suit charges. The women argue they would not have purchased the defective product if they had received an adequate warning of its dangers.

In fact, the consumers said the label was actually misleading and inaccurate when it implied the product was safe to use with styling appliances. While this report in Consumer Affairs does not mention injuries, thousands of consumers are seeking damages and injunctive relief.

An experienced product liability attorney in Florida must first prove that the product is defective in its design, its manufacture or in its marketing. A defective marketing campaign fails to enclose proper instructions with the product and omits any and all information about dangers. If a person is injured by a product, he or she has the right to compensation for their damages and may be able to include the wholesaler, retailer and anyone involved in the distribution of production of the product.

Sources: http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/2011/07/suit-loreal-failed-to-warn-anti-frizz-serum-could-set-hair-on-fire.html and http://www.courthousenews.com/2011/07/01/Flaming.pdf

Public Citizen, the consumer advocacy group, has filed a petition with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), urging the agency to order a Missouri company to recall all Bedside Assistant bed handles, also known as bed rail devices, because they pose a danger to weak and frail elderly who can be injured by the medical device. The rails are supposed to offer support for those who are bedridden, but they can strangle and suffocate those who are caught between the rails and the mattress, says the petition pointing out that bed rails are used in patients’ and nursing homes.

The Public Citizen Health Research Group found that since 1999, four patients have been trapped by Bedside Assistant, however the true number may not be known because a nursing home may not think to contact the FDA not understanding that this is a medical device overseen by the FDA. Deaths sometimes occurred when the patient’s trachea or chest wall pressed against the support bars and the frail person could not extract themselves.

The Public Citizen petition compares the defective medical device to the defective drop-side cribs, 7 million of which are currently being recalled by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Both have trapped people too weak to protect themselves, i.e. infants and elderly.

In its defense, the manufacturer says the Public Citizen petition is incomplete and inaccurate. A spokesman says that after a second injury, the company added buckles and straps to securely affix the bed handles to the bed, therefore fixing the defective design. He says there have been no additional problems since the straps were added. A defective design will impact the entire lot of product manufactured and a retrofit is not exactly a sound alternative to recalling the entire lot and fixing the design defect.

Farah & Farah’s product liability attorneys in Jacksonville understand that a manufacturer may have made a mistake in manufacturing, which may affect a number of products, or there may be a defective design, which likely will affect the entire product. With the deaths of at least four individuals whose families relied on the promises of Bedside Assistant, adding a security strap may not be the best way to fix a defective product, though it may be the most cost-effective fix. Don’t our seniors deserve better?

Sources: http://www.citizen.org/hrg1947 and http://thechart.blogs.cnn.com/2011/05/04/bed-handles-dangerous-for-elderly-public-citizen-says/

Courtroom View covered the West Palm Beach products liability trial of the Yamaha WaveRunner jet ski that killed one teenage girl and left another with horrific brain injuries in an Easter 2005 crash. On Monday, June 20, the jury awarded damages of $35 million to the two families. They had originally sought $100 million in compensation. The judge had said he would not allow punitive damages because there was no evidence Yamaha’s action constituted a “reckless indifference to human life.”

The driver of the WaveRunner had three seconds to figure out what to do when she let up on the throttle in West Palm Beach waters. That’s when she discovered she couldn’t steer and instead slammed into the boat ahead of them. The Yamaha personal water craft looses steering ability when the throttle is released. That girl would be alive today if the WaveRunner had rudders, said the plaintiffs’ attorney. The product had an inability to steer as far back as 2001 and the attorneys reminded jurors that a $20 part from Home Depot would have allowed a driver the ability to steer. “This is extremely reckless, highly irresponsible behavior,” one of the plaintiff attorneys to the jury.

The jury found the 2001 Yamaha WaveRunner XL800 had a defective design and failed to warn the public of its dangers and in finding that awarded 88 percent of the fault to Yamaha. The jury awarded $39.8 million to the two families with Yamaha responsible for paying about $35 million.

The threshold requirement in product liability law in Florida is that the plaintiff be injured. Here, regardless of whether the steering or rudder was defective, an injury and a death resulted from the WaveRunner. The jury verdict sends a clear message that Yamaha needs to clean up its act and produce a safe product that protects the safety and welfare of its users.

If you have been injured by a device that did not work as you expected, you may have a product liability action. Allow Farah & Farah a review of the circumstances of your case to determine if we can help you. All consultations are complimentary and at the very least you will have a better understanding of the legal options you can pursue.

Source: http://info.courtroomview.com/Blog/bid/59592/35M-Awarded-in-Defective-Yamaha-Watercraft-Trial