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
