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Archive for the ‘Products Liability’ Category
Friday, November 18th, 2011
Considering there were 177 million vehicles on the road in 2006 which were equipped with airbags, it’s hardly surprising that there have also been injuries caused from the airbags themselves. There are also records of injuries or death resulting from the airbag’s failure to deploy in a serious accident. While no one will dispute that airbags do save lives, injuries and deaths from this safety device happen more often than you would think. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimates that over 22,000 people have had their life saved by an airbag.
On the flip side, since the early 1990’s, there have been 284 deaths which were directly caused by an airbag. These injuries and deaths could be a result of faulty design or manufacture, or defects which cause the airbags to deploy too early, too late, or to fail completely to deploy when they should. Many times airbags will also deploy in a simple bump-in at low speeds which would have caused no injuries, leaving the victim suffering airbag injuries.
Possible Injuries from Airbags
Aside from death, airbags have caused traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, neck and head injuries, internal trauma, hearing or sight loss and less serious injuries such as lacerations, concussions, fractures, burns and abrasions. Shorter, smaller women, the elderly, and children are all at a particular risk for airbag injury.
How an Airbag Works
Sensors in your car are meant to detect any sudden deceleration or a crash, although they are not meant to detect a simple hard braking. In some vehicles sensors are located in several positions, because studies have indicated that a single sensor may misread the need for deployment. Some manufacturers will even install back-up sensors in case of sensor failure. Once the sensors detect the need for airbag deployment, a signal is sent to an electronic command post of sorts which alerts the inflator in the airbag—in the most sophisticated, high-end vehicles, these sensors can also send information regarding the occupants weight, the seat position and whether or not the seatbelt is being properly used, which in turn affects the speed and force of airbag deployment.
The control unit then triggers a chemical reaction, which produces a gas that immediately inflates the folded airbag. The entire process occurs in less than the blink of an eye, and the gas used is generally argon or nitrogen. The airbag is meant to deflate as quickly as it inflates, so the occupant’s movements will not be restricted following the crash. Because airbags deploy at an astonishing 200 mph, you can see the potential for injury; when the occupant comes into contact with an airbag, which is still in the process of inflating, that means he is being hit by an airbag moving 200 mph. On the flip side, if the occupant is thrown into an airbag which has already begun deflating, they will hit the interior hard surfaces of the vehicle rather than the airbag. Even in the best circumstances many people suffer bruises from the force of the airbag striking their chest and arm area.
Getting Help Following an Airbag Injury
If you’ve been injured in an accident due to an airbag malfunction, you must immediately contact a knowledgeable attorney who has extensive experience regarding airbag injuries and death. Your attorney will be able to determine whether your airbag deployed too quickly, deployed too late, or failed to deploy at all, and how this malfunction directly caused your injuries. Your attorney may file a claim against the manufacturer of the automobile or the manufacturer of the airbag itself. Even when a vehicle manufacturer has properly complied with regulated safety mandates, they can still be held liable for airbag injuries which result from design flaws, manufacturing mistakes, installation issues or even inadequate safety warnings. Although airbags save lives they also cause injuries, and if you are a victim of such injuries, you deserve compensation for your medical bills, lost wages and pain and suffering.
At the Nahon Firm, PLC, we will fight to help you win. Our Nashville personal injury attorneys will treat you with the utmost compassion and respect. You can count on compassion, dedication, and determination towards your case. Call us today and speak with a Nashville accident lawyer to discuss the details of your case. Call (615) 324-2000.
Tags: Nashville auto accident lawyer
Posted in Products Liability | Comments Off
Tuesday, October 11th, 2011
The use of child restraint systems, more commonly known as car seats, is typical in the life of any family with children. However, according to the National Center for Statistics and Analysis, these thought to be harmless trips are actually the cause of 250,000 injuries and 2000 deaths in children around the world. Children between the ages of 2-14 die from car accidents more than they do anything else. Car seats have been accepted as a means of safety for children for years. The incompatibility between seat belts and child safety restraints however, results in 80% of these systems being used in the wrong way.
Many car seats were created to be compatible with seat belts that are now out of date. Typical child restraint systems are designed to be used on bench seats. In older models, the seat belt anchor was between the back side of the seat and the bench, while in newer models it is located in a very different area on a stalk. There has been very little change in child safety restraint configurations by car seat manufacturers, nor are customers are not told of this possibly fatal flaw in design.
Child safety during a car wreck is of the utmost importance to Montlick and Associates. By riding in the back seat, child injuries are 40% less likely to occur and child deaths are 30% less likely. With a child being restrained in the middle back seat there is a 43% lower chance of he or she being hurt than if the child were in one of the outside seats. These simple rules to a child’s safety are regrettably not regularly followed by many parents. Around 55% of 13 year olds are allowed to ride in the front seat as well as 30% of 10 year olds. If a car wreck was to occur, the chance of a death or injury to a child would be greatly lessened if the child was placed in a safer area.
Britax, Fisher-Price, Kolcraft, Cosco (Dorel), Evenflo, Graco, and Centure are the seven major manufacturers of car seats. Over 11 million safety restraint system recalls have been made in the last 10 years by these companies. The main causes of injuries in a car wreck due to child safety restraints are a handful of defects listed below:
- Faulty Chest Clips: Many of these clips don’t work during an auto accident because they are made with cheap material and don’t secure the shoulder straps in the car seat as they are supposed to.
- Inadequate Cushioning and Padding: Without the right amount of padding, it is easy for a child to be hurt in his or her car seat during an accident.
- Detachable Safety Restraint Systems: Injuries sometimes occur by the base of the car seat coming loose from the carrier during a car wreck.
- Faulty Car Seat Buckles: Many of these buckles are built to where they can easily be opened by a child or can break during an auto accident.
At The Nahon Firm PLC, our goal is for you to receive the compensation you deserve
for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, permanent disability, and loss of enjoyment of life due to car accidents, truck accidents, motorcycle accidents and all other types of personal injury claims. With offices in Nashville, The Nahon Firm PLC has the experience and resources necessary to investigate and resolve your case. Our Nashville personal injury attorneys are adept negotiators who have the necessary trial experience to obtain the best possible results for your personal injury claim. Call us today to discuss your case by calling (615) 324-2000.
Tags: Nashville auto accident lawyer
Posted in Auto Accidents, Products Liability | Comments Off
Wednesday, October 5th, 2011
People are inevitably involved in car wrecks somehow throughout their lives. More than 70 accidents per hour, or 1,720 people per day, occur in some places in the South. Resulting in internal damage, brain damage, head and neck injuries, bone fractures, partial or whole paralysis, and even death, auto accidents can be lethal indeed. In these same southern areas, more than 1,700 people die in car wrecks annually. A typical motorist in the south will be in one accident every ten years, no matter what other statistics say about other people involved in car accidents.
The fact that faulty products are the cause of many of these auto accidents is very unfortunate. Auto manufacturers are obligated to enhance the safety of their vehicles and keep defects from occurring when product liability lawsuits are brought against them. For years, those who have been injured in auto accidents have went to The Nahon Firm, PLLC for their legal advice. Pushing the auto industry towards new safety measures, product liability lawsuits are used by these lawyers to aid existing victims and prevent future injuries from occurring.
The past few years have seen major improvement in vehicle safety. Government regulations have helped create the newer, safer automobile. However, when automobile manufacturers decide to put their profits before the safety of their customers, many defective vehicles are produced leading to car wrecks. Here are some of the current defects in motor vehicles that have led to preventable accidents and injuries:
- Faulty Air Bags
- Faulty Tires
- Weak Roof Structure and Narrow Wheel base resulting in SUV Rollovers
- Faulty Safety Belts
- Defects Causing Abrupt Acceleration Accidents
Many more car defects than this have been seen lately. Injuries and accidents can be caused by one of the numerous parts of an intricately designed automobile. Automobile manufacturers typically pass the cost of automobile accident settlements as a “cost of doing business”, but when a product liability lawsuit is brought against them the court is allowed to assign punitive damages that are supposed to stop them from doing this. Government regulations created to bring about safer automobiles are enforced through the threat of punitive damages in a product liability lawsuit.
As effective as these regulations may seem, the threat of punitive damages in a product liability lawsuit is often far more successful in bringing about safety changes. Only after serious injuries or death occur from auto accidents are government regulations enforced. The best way to bring positive changes to vehicle defects is by compelling the auto manufacturers the costs of faulty parts with the threat of punitive damages.
At The Nahon Firm PLC, our goal is for you to receive the compensation you deserve for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, permanent disability, and loss of enjoyment of life due to car accidents, truck accidents, motorcycle accidents and all other types of personal injury claims. With offices in Nashville, The Nahon Firm PLC has the experience and resources necessary to investigate and resolve your case. Our Nashville personal injury attorneys are adept negotiators who have the necessary trial experience to obtain the best possible results for your personal injury claim. Call us today to discuss your case by calling (615) 324-2000.
Tags: Nashville personal injury attorney
Posted in Products Liability | Comments Off
Wednesday, November 17th, 2010
In August of 2010, a DePuy ASR hip recall was announced which affects approximately 93,000 patients that have received the defective implants. Recent data confirmed that the hip devices manufactured by DePuy and Johnson & Johnson, has been shown to fail at an unusually high rate. Many of the failures require patients to undergo another surgery to correct the first hip replacement.
Potential claimants for DePuy ASR hip lawsuits are engaging our law firm if they suspect that they may have received the metal-on-metal hip implant.
Complications from defective DePuy ASR hip implants may include:
- Crackling or popping noises or vibrations in post hip replacement areas
- Unexplained Hip Pain
- Loosening of the DePuy ASR Hip
- Hip Failure
- Additional Hip Replacement or Revision Surgery
All of these potential claims are currently being investigate by our law firm. If you have a defective DePut hip , we may represent you with no fees or expenses to be paid by you unless a recovery is obtained. Call (615) 324-2000 for a free consultation.
Tags: DePuy ASR Hip Class Action Lawsuits, DePuy ASR Hip Recall
Posted in ACR Hip Implant Lawsuits | Comments Off
Friday, November 12th, 2010
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, announced November 12, 2010  that a voluntary recall of the 2011 Anthem Giant Bicycle due to risks involving falls and potential serious injury. Purchasers of the bicycle are advised to stop riding this recalled bicycle immediately unless advised otherwise. Retailers of the Anthem X 29er bicycles are reminded that it is illegal to resell or attempt to resell a recalled consumer product.
The hazard is due to the bicycle’s frame which may crack at the junction of the seat post and top tube. This poses a fall hazard to the riders of this make and model bicycle.
This recall involves 2011 model year Giant Anthem X 29er 1, 2 and 3 model bicycles. The bicycles were sold in small, medium and large. “Giant” and the model name are printed on the bicycle. The bicycles were sold by authorized Giant Bicycle dealers nationwide during August 2010 for between $2,200 and $3,500.
If you have purchased this bicycle, you are advised by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to immediately stop riding the recalled bicycles and contact any authorized Giant Bicycle dealer for a free inspection and repair.
For additional information, contact Giant Bicycle toll-free at (866) 458-2555 between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. PT Monday through Friday.
If you or a loved one has been injured due to a recalled bicycle, call (615) 324-2000 to speak with a Tennessee personal injury attorney about your legal rights.
Tags: Giant Recalls Their Anthem X 29er Bicycles Due to Fall Hazard
Posted in Bicycle Recalls | Comments Off
Thursday, September 30th, 2010
Mattel’s Fisher-Price brand that offers products and toys for children under 5 announced today that  the company is recalling four different products which total more than 11 million units of toys and children’s products sold since the 1990s. The issues surrounding the recalls appear to be related to concerns arising following a variety of injuries, mishaps and safety issues.
The four products named in the recall include Fisher Price’s trikes, high chairs, toys with inflatable balls and another recalled product from the company’s Little People line.
Cut injuries to children is what led to the recalls of both the trike and high chair products. The most significant types of injuries have involved small girls who rode the trikes and had genital bleeding from colliding with a protruding plastic key. The Fisher Price high chair injuries were a result of the cuts and scrapes received from the parts or areas which were intended for tray storage.
In 2009, Fisher-Price paid a $2.3 million penalty for violating the federal government’s ban on lead paint. Two years prior to that, Fisher-Price paid approximately $1 million for failing to report more than 30 incidents involving one of its Little People toys.
Companies are required to report to the CPSC when they observe a defect that could cause injury or harm or receive reports from consumers that raise safety issues.
The Fisher Price recall as of 2:15 EST has not had much impact on the stock price of Mattel, Inc (MAT:NASDAQ GS).
The compassionate Nashville products liability attorneys at The Nahon Firm, PLC, represent the parents of injured children due to unsafe or faulty children’s toys and products. If you would like more information about the Fisher Price recalled toys or any other type of product injury claim, call us today at (615) 324-2000 for a free consultation.
Tags: Fisher-price-recall-toys-lawsuit-attorneys-tennessee, Nashville products liability attorneys
Posted in Fisher-Price Recalls | Comments Off
Thursday, September 23rd, 2010
Plaintiff Attorneys representing injured victims of the recalled Johnson & Johnson DePuy ASR hip implant are seeking to bring the lawsuits in to a consolidated multidistrict litigation. A motion filed on behalf of a woman who originally filed a Johnson & Johnson DePuy ASR hip implant lawsuit in California has made the consolidation request to the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation.
Johnson & Johnson recently recalled their DePuy ASR Hip Implant system after medical data collected from the National Joint Registry of England and Wales showed 12%-13% or approximately 1 out of 8 of those individuals who had received the recalled ACR devices were required to have a revision surgery within five years of receiving those implants. The ASR XL Acetabular System, which is a hip socket, and the ASR Hip Resurfacing System, a partial hip replacement that involves placing a metal cap on the ball of the femur are part of the recalled hip devices. The ASR XL Acetabular System is the only recalled hip implant that was approved in United States.
The symptoms of a potentially failing ASR hip implant may include an increase in pain or difficulty walking.
Patients who received one of the ACR hip implants are advised to call their surgeon and schedule a follow-up appointment, even if they are not experiencing symptoms or pain. The manufacturer may not maintain a list 0f the hip replacement implant patients, so patients who had the hip surgery after July 2003 are being advise to contact their surgeon or hospital to find out if there hip implant is part of this recall.
A multidistrict litigation (MDL) would allow all of the claimants that have or will file lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson DePuy in regards to the ASR recall lawsuit to be litigated under one federal judge for pretrial litigation. This is to prevent or avoid any duplicative discovery from being entered in as evidence, and to prevent inconsistent rulings from other federal judges. This MDL filing, if granted, will conserve some of the resources of each party such as expert witnesses, court costs, and court time.
If you have any questions about this hip implant recall or would like to see if you have a claim with this ACR Hip Implant Recall lawsuit, call the Tennessee attorneys of The Nahon Firm, PLC at (615) 324-2000 for a free consultation.
Tags: Tennessee Motion Filed to Centralize Johnson and Johnson - DePuy ASR Recall Lawsuits Filed
Posted in ACR Hip Implant Lawsuits, Medical Devices Recall | Comments Off
Thursday, September 2nd, 2010
Healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson has announced a voluntary recall of two hip-replacement systems due to a higher rate of revision surgeries required by patients. The recall adds to the company’s growing list of quality issues and comes just days after the company was warned by the FDA that is improperly marketing two other products.
DePuy Orthopaedics Inc., the orthopaedics unit of Johnson & Johnson, said that the recalled devices are the ASR XL Acetabular System, which is the cup portion of a replacement hip joint, and the ASR Hip Resurfacing System, a partial hip replacement that involves placing a metal cap on the ball of the hip bone or femur.
The ASR Hip Resurfacing system was introduced in 2003 and is only approved for use outside the U.S. The ASR XL Acetabular system was first launched in 2004 and has been available worldwide.
DePuy said it initiated the recall based on new, unpublished data from the National Joint Registry of England and Wales which showed that more people than expected who received the ASR Hip System experienced pain and other symptoms, leading to a second hip replacement surgery, called a revision surgery.
Specifically, the data shows that five years after implantation, about 12% of patients who had received the ASR resurfacing device and 13% of patients who had received the ASR total hip replacement needed to have a revision surgery.
DePuy noted that very few of these hip systems remain on the market after the company decided to discontinue sales last year due to declining demand and to focus on new products.
The company advised patients with an ASR device to visit their surgeons for evaluation of device performance and recommended yearly monitoring to ensure the device is functioning well, even in the absence of symptoms. The company said it intends to cover reasonable and customary costs of monitoring and treatment for services, including revision surgeries, associated with the recall.
The recall comes just days after the FDA issued a warning letter to DePuy for selling hip and other joint products without the agency’s approval. The FDA said in its letter dated August 19 that the company has been selling its TruMatch Personalized Solutions System, which makes artificial knee products, and the Corail Hip System without marketing clearance and in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. The FDA has given DePuy 15 days to correct the violations.
Johnson & Johnson has come under intense scrutiny by the FDA and federal prosecutors over the past year. On Monday, the company’s Vision Care Inc. unit reportedly issued a voluntary recall for about 100,000 boxes of “1 Day Acuvue TruEye” contact lenses sold in Asia and Europe, citing a manufacturing problem.
Tags: ASR Hip Resurfacing System recall, ASR XL Acetabular System recall, Johnson & Johnson Hip Replacement Lawsuit Class Action Lawyers
Posted in Medical Devices Recall, Products Liability | Comments Off
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