If you are injured by a defective product in Escondido, you most likely will be eligible to file a product liability lawsuit. Depending upon the defect associated with the product and the way in which you got hurt, you could be able to file a design defect claim, a manufacturing defect lawsuit, or a marketing defect case. However, in some situations, product designers, manufacturers, and sellers may have immunity from certain types of claims. In the new era of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Public Readiness and Emergency Preparedness Act (PREP Act) gives liability to certain manufacturers who are designing and manufacturing products for combatting the coronavirus. Most immediately, the PREP Act could give automakers immunity in situations in which products like ventilators turn out to be defective.

We want to say more about the PREP Act and how its immunity provision could prevent consumers from filing product liability lawsuits. At the same time, we will explain the limitations of PREP Act immunity for defective products.

Immunity from Product Defect Cases Under the PREP Act

Since the start of the COVID-19 emergency in the United States, manufacturers in varying industries have shifted to designing and manufacturing products aimed at combating the disease caused by coronavirus exposure. Most notably, perhaps, is the way in which some automakers have shifted to producing ventilators as opposed to automobile parts. Under ordinary circumstances, automakers that design and manufacture defective products can be held liable for injuries in product liability lawsuits.

Under the PREP Act, however, automakers (and other entities developing products aimed at fighting the COVID-19 pandemic) likely will have immunity from any claims that could arise as a result of defective ventilators or other products created to provide countermeasures to coronavirus infections. Indeed, the PREP Act “provides immunity from liability (except for willful misconduct) for claims of loss caused, arising out of, relating to, or resulting from administration or use of countermeasures to diseases, threats and conditions determined . . . to constitute a present, or credible risk of a future public health emergency to entities and individuals involved in the development, manufacture, testing, distribution, administration, and use of such countermeasures.”

Limitations of PREP Act Liability?

To put all of that another way, nearly any individual or entity involved in the design, manufacture, sale, or distribution of public health emergency products will be immune from liability in the event that one of those products ends up being defective. However, it is important to know that there are limitations. The emergency use authorization (EUA) only extends through October 2024. While automakers and others may have immunity up until that date, it is possible that any injury resulting from a product defect that occurs after that date may not be subject to the immunity provided by the PREP Act. In other words, if an injury occurs after October 2024, the injured consumer may be able to file a product liability lawsuit.

To be clear, PREP Act immunity does not apply to products that are not related to fighting the pandemic. For example, automakers are still liable for injuries caused by product defects in automobiles. Yet ventilators and other similar items may result in immunity through late 2024.

Contact an Escondido Product Liability Lawyer

If you have questions about filing a defective product claim, an Escondido product liability attorney can help. Contact the Walton Law Firm for more information.

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Do you own a Ford Fusion, or have you been thinking about purchasing a used Ford Fusion? Anyone in California who is currently in possession of a Ford Fusion or has considering buying one of these vehicles used should pay close attention to a recent product recall. According to a recent article in USA Today, “several dozen Ford Fusion owners complained in recent months that their steering wheels had some loose or had come off completely while driving.” After receiving numerous reports of this serious safety defects, Ford issued a large-scale recall impacting at least 1.4 million Fusion models and Lincoln MKZ Sedans. What else should you know about the recall and the dangers posed by auto product defects?

Loose Steering Wheels Could Cause Serious and Fatal Car Accidents

To be clear, 1.4 million vehicles are subject to a safety recall because their steering wheels either can become loose while a person is behind the wheel, or the steering wheel can fall off entirely while a person is driving. According to Ford, the cause of the problem is “potentially loose steering wheel bolts” which can “result in a steering wheel detaching from the steering column.” Ford indicated that, as far as the company knows, two accidents have occurred thus far, and at least one injury has happened.

However, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) suggests that problems with Ford steering wheels are wider spread. The NHTSA complaint database for auto safety defects “reveals more than 45 independent report of problems in the last few years.” Owners of Ford Fusions have submitted numerous complaints to the automaker about the dangerous steering wheel defect. The following are some quotes from consumer complaints:

• “While driving on the interstate, steering wheel came loose and car veered off interstate”;
• “My 2014 Ford Fusion steering wheel became unstable and I drifted into a manhole in the street . . . and totaled my car”;
• “While entering the vehicle, knee bumped the steering wheel and the steering wheel became detached”;
• “While driving approximately 55 mph, the steering wheel detached from the steering column”;
• “My steering wheel has become very loose and feels like it’s going to fall off”;
• “I was driving in a parking lot . . . and the steering wheel came so loose that it almost came right off”; and
• “The steering became a little wobbly over the past two weeks . . . . I went to turn in gas station and the steering wheel fell off in my lap.”

Filing a Product Defect Lawsuit in California

If you get hurt as a result of a defective product, what do you need to prove in order to win a product liability lawsuit in California? The California Civil Jury Instructions explain that product liability claims are brought under a theory of strict liability, and the plaintiff must prove the following:

• Plaintiff was harmed by a product distributed, manufactured, or sold by the defendant; and
• Product contained a manufacturing defect or was defectively designed or did not include sufficient instruction or a warning of potential safety hazards.

Contact a San Clemente Product Defect Attorney

Were you injured by a safety defect? An experienced San Clemente product defect attorney can help with your case. Contact the Walton Law Firm to speak with an experienced advocate today.

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(image courtesy of Kalu Ci)

Instant Pot multicookers have become extremely popular over the last year, but do they pose a risk of burn injury? Articles have emphasized that the pressure cookers can make almost anything, from stews to wines. However, according to a recent report from WebMD, certain Instant Pot models may have a safety defect that could result in the unit overheating and, ultimately, starting a fire. If you own an Instant Pot and regularly use it to make dinner in Rancho Bernardo, do you need to stop using the pressure cooker altogether? We will discuss the recall associated with defective pressure cookers and how the defect could cause burn injuries.

Getting the Facts About the Recalled Gem 65 8-in-1 Multicooker

According to the report, the problem exists in some models of the Gem 65 8-in-1 Multicooker. Many were sold at Walmart and by other popular retail outlets, and they are now being recalled. Double Insight, the company that currently imports these Instant Pot models from China, has received to date more than 100 separate reports of the Instant Pot “overheating and melting on the bottom.” In at least five cases, consumers have sustained property damage. An overheating kitchen device can pose a serious risk of burn injuries and fire damage to your home.

It is important to learn whether you have an Instant Pot model that is subject to the recall. How can you know for certain? There is a code located in the lower right corner of a label on the bottom of the device. Look in the area where the label says “Date,” and if it has any of the following codes, you should immediately stop using it and return it to receive a free replacement device:

• 1728;
• 1730;
• 1731;
• 1734; and/or
• 1736.

As we mentioned, if one of these codes appears on the bottom of your Instant Pot, you should unplug it and take it into the store for a free replacement.

Is This Recall a Reason to Worry About Suffering Injuries as a Result of Using Your Instant Pot?

Given the popularity of these kitchen devices, a recent article in The New York Times urged consumers not to jump to conclusions about the risks associated with Instant Pot use. As that article says, “If headlines about an ‘Instant Pot recall’ or an ‘Instant Pot meltdown’ have been making you anxious, there’s reason for relief.” The article goes on to contend that “your beloved pressure cooker is probably fine.” But is that really true?

We do not know exactly how many devices are subject to the recall. What we do know, however, is that more than 100 reports have already been received about the safety defect, and even more people own Instant Pots. Over the 2017 Black Friday and holiday sales season, the Instant Pot “was among the top five items sold by Amazon and Target. At Kohls, the Instant Pot was in the top three sellers, and the company Instant Pot reports that its “sales have more than doubled every year since 2011.” In other words, a lot of Instant Pots have been sold, and they could pose burn dangers.

Contact a Rancho Bernardo Burn Injury Lawyer

If you sustained burn injuries caused by a defective product or by another party’s negligence, a Rancho Bernardo burn injury attorney can help. Contact the Walton Law Firm today to discuss your case with a dedicated attorney.

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(image courtesy of Paolo Bendandi)

Whether you live in Encinitas or another part of San Diego County, you should know about a bill that has been introduced in California to “prohibit settlement agreements that keep secret information about dangerous products and environmental hazards,” according to a recent article in the Sacramento Bee. The bill is not the first of its kind. To be sure, a number of other states have enacted similar laws to help ensure that consumers can have important information about hazardous products that could cause personal injuries. We want to provide some more information about the bill, and to give you an idea of how it could impact personal injury lawsuits in Southern California concerning product defects.

Confidential Settlements and Defective Products in California

Assemblyman Mark Stone introduced Assembly Bill 889, which is designed to prevent lawsuit settlements that are conditioned on information about defective products that could pose “a danger to public health and safety” being kept confidential. Currently, when consumers file lawsuits against manufacturers after being injured by a product with a safety defect, for example, the manufacturer can settle the lawsuit and require the consumer to agree to confidentiality. Often, such confidentiality is to ensure that a protective order issued by the court that “prevent[s] plaintiffs from disclosing information that they have learned and insist, as a condition of settling a lawsuit, that the parties remain silent about the matter.”

Such a settlement, in effect, can prevent the public from obtaining information about a potentially harmful product. In addition, such settlements may prevent regulators from learning about possible defects that could prompt a safety recall. As the article contends, “such secrecy leads to deaths and serious injuries as the public and regulators are kept in the dark about unsafe products and toxic conditions.” If Assembly Bill 889 passes, it would prevent plaintiffs from entering into settlement agreements that would prevent this kind of information from staying secret.

How Settlements can Result in Additional Consumer Injuries

Why do these kinds of settlement agreements arise? In many instances, manufacturers (or other associated with a defective product) may benefit more by settling a claim and keeping information out of the public realm as opposed to allowing the lawsuit to move forward. The article explains that businesses often “fear that revelations will cause a loss of sales and harm their reputation.”

When protective orders prevent plaintiffs from providing information about a potentially defective product, these hazardous consumer items can stay on the market for a longer period of time. There are real-world examples of this happening. For example, a tire recall occurred in 2000 due to a defect that resulted in the deaths of more than 150 people. When the recall occurred—after these deaths had been reported—it became clear that “more than 200 cases had been secretly settled in the decade prior to the recall.”

If the bill passes, it could provide consumers with more information that could prevent personal injuries. At the same time, it could change the way that product liability lawsuits lead to settlements (and what those settlements can look like).

Contact an Escondido Personal Injury Lawyer

To learn more about product liability lawsuits and dangerous product defects, you should reach out to an Escondido product defect lawyer. Contact the Emerson Law Firm for more information.

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(image courtesy of Imthaz Ahamed)

Consumers in Valley Center and throughout Southern California should be able to purchase products without worrying that a safety defect will cause serious or life-threatening injuries. However, product defects happen much more often than they should, and consumers often do not learn about recalls until other people have gotten hurt. According to a recent report in The Washington Post, a series of recent recalls highlights design and manufacturing flaws in a number of consumer products that could lead to serious personal injuries if consumers do not heed the recall information.

Defective Children’s Products and Child Injuries

A toddler bed has been subject to a recent recall after consumers reported that the bed “can collapse and entrap a child.” According to reports, The Land of Nod company’s “Nook” toddler beds have a faulty headboard and frame system. The recall notice indicates that the headboard can unexpectedly disconnect from the bed frame and can fall onto the bed, entrapping a child who is using the product. Currently, the company knows about four separate reports of the headboard disconnecting from the bedframe and falling onto the bed. Although no injuries have been reported, anyone in possession of one of these beds could be placing their children at risk of injuries.

If you have a toddler bed made by The Land of Nod, and it has the SKU number 404485, you should call the company for a replacement. These products were sold at various stores across the country as well as online between May 2015 and September 2017.

Bicycle Crash Risks and Mountain Bike Recall

Many outdoor enthusiasts in Valley Centers own bicycles, and many San Diego County area residents have mountain bikes. The report indicates that a particular mountain bike has been recalled due to the risk of brake failure, which could result in serious injury or death to the rider. The recall affects all Altitude, Instinct and Pipeline mountain bicycles, in all colors, from model year 2018. Anyone who has purchased a Rocky Mountain bike should learn more about the recall.

Specifically, the recall notice indicates that “the brake cable housing was not secured properly during manufacturing, which can cause brake failure, posing a crash hazard to the rider.” These bikes were sold at Rocky Mountain bicycle dealers across the country between June 2017 and November 2017 for anywhere from $2,600 to $7,300. There are several Rocky Mountain bike dealers in the San Diego area, such as Cycle Quest and North of the Border Bike Shop.

The particular defect represents what is known as a “manufacturing defect.” While there is nothing inherently wrong with the design of the mountain bike, a defect occurred during the manufacturing process. Generally speaking, there are three types of product defects – design defects, manufacturing defects, and marketing defects. When manufacturing defects occur, the manufacturer can be held liable in the event that injuries occur.

Seek Advice from a Valley Center Product Liability Lawyer

If a defective product recently caused personal injuries to you or someone you love, you should learn more about filing a product liability lawsuit. An experienced Valley Center product liability lawyer can speak with you today about your claim. Contact the Walton Law Firm for more information.

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(image courtesy of Clark Young)

For any San Marcos residents who regularly use a Cuisinart food processor in the kitchen, it is extremely important to be aware of a recent product recall that could impact your family’s safety. In most households, we have come to expect that high-end kitchen appliances are safe for use. In particular, devices made by companies like Kitchenaid, Vitamix, and Cuisinart are supposed to provide decades of use as long as they are properly cared for by their owners. However, according to a recent article from ABC 10 News, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), along with Conair (the maker of Cuisinart kitchen appliances), has issued a recall for millions of Cuisinart food processors.

What is wrong with these small kitchen appliances? They pose a risk of laceration, and dozens of consumers across the country have already reported suffering serious mouth injuries as a result of the product defect.

Defective Riveted Blade in Cuisinart Food Processors Results in Massive Recall

In the early weeks of the holiday season, Cuisinart and the CPSC issued a recall for nearly eight million Cuisinart food processors, reporting that the blades could be defective and could result in severe personal injuries. How did the company know about the problem with the food processor blades? It received reports from a wide variety of nearly 70 consumers who indicated they had found “broken blade pieces in their processed food.” Of those consumers, 30 of them (or about 43% of those who filed a report with Cuisinart or the CPSC) indicated that they had sustained “mouth lacerations or tooth injuries.”

Although much kitchen preparation and cooking takes place around the holiday season, just because we have already entered into 2017 does not mean you should avoid taking action on this recall. According to Elliot Kaye, the CPSC Chairman, Cuisinart food processors “are in millions of American homes, including my own.” He emphasized the need to heed the recall notice: “You find out that there’s a problem when you bite down and you cut your mouth and you break your teeth . . . . With all the cooking that’s going on this holiday season [and beyond], we’re really urging consumers to act immediately.”

Check Your Food Processor’s Model Number and Replace the Defective Blade

The defect is not in the small kitchen appliance as a whole, but rather in the riveted blade. How can you identify a defective blade? As the article explains, these blade have four rivets, the blades are made of stainless steel, and they are connected to a beige center made of plastic. There are 22 different model numbers that have been affected by the recall. If you own a Cuisinart food processor, you should immediately check the bottom of it to ensure that you do now have one of the following recalled model numbers: CFP-9, CFP-11, DFP-7, DFP-11, DFP-14, DLC-7, DLC-8, DLC-10, DLC-XP, DLC-2007, DLC-2009, DLC-2011, DLC-2014, DLC-3011, DLC-3014, EV-7, EV-10, EV-11, EV-14, KFP-7, and MP-14.

Do not assume that your product was not affected simply because you have had it for years. The recall affects models that were made and sold between July 1996 and December 2015. In other words, a Cuisinart food processor that you have been using for the last two decades could cause serious injuries. If you do own one of the affected model numbers, you should stop using it immediately and should contact Cuisinart for a replacement blade.

Contact a San Marcos Product Liability Lawyer

If you or someone in your family suffered injuries caused by a defective product, a San Marcos product liability lawyer can help. Contact the Walton Law Firm today to discuss your case.

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(image courtesy of Fourinthemorning)

Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, many parents in Carlsbad and throughout San Diego County are beginning to think about holiday gifts for children. With considerations for children’s toys often come concerns about toy safety, product defects, and the risks of child injury. According to a recent article in WebMD.com, a safety group has just released its “annual dangerous toys” list just in time for the holiday season. What toys should parents avoid when purchasing gifts for young children?

WATCH Releases List of Dangerous Toys

Each year, World Against Toys Causing Harm (WATCH), a consumer watchdog group, releases a list of dangerous toys. As WATCH emphasizes, “since January 2015 there have been recalls involving more than 800,000 individual products, including 500,000 this year alone.” As such, it is important to be careful when selecting toys for children. Just because a toy says that it is intended for a child of a certain age group does not mean that the product is free of safety defects.

As WATCH points out, “every three minutes a child is treated in a U.S. emergency room for a toy-related injury.” Over the last two years, nearly 20 children’s toys have been implicated in recalls related to safety defects. In many cases, visits to emergency departments result from preventable injuries caused by defective children’s products. Not all children’s products that cause injuries are defective, but numerous toys that may have safety defects are not always subject to a recall. Of the items on this year’s list of dangerous toys, the possibility of a marketing defect, or the failure to warn, seems to loom large.

Generally speaking, product defects that can lead to product liability lawsuits typically fall into one of three categories:

• Design defects (defect in the very design of the product),
• Manufacturing defects (soundly designed product, but a defect occurred in the manufacturing process),
• Marketing defect (there is nothing inherently wrong with the product, but it was not properly marketed so as to warn consumers about potential risks)

Toys Identified as Dangerous for Californians This Holiday Season

What toys topped the list of potentially hazardous products that could result in child injuries? The article lists some of the following:

• Peppa Pig’s Muddy Puddles Family, which can pose a choking hazard because of its small parts;
• Kids Time Baby Children’s Elephant Pillow, which can pose a suffocation hazard but does not warn consumers about such a risk;
• Slimeball Slinger, which can cause eye injuries from the toy’s ammunition;
• Banzai Bump N’ Bounce Body Bumpers, which can cause impact injuries;
• Nerf Rival Apollo Blaster, which can cause eye injuries but does not come with warnings about such a risk;
• The Good Dinosaur Galloping Butch, which can cause puncture wounds but does not have a warning that mentions this;
• Peppy Pups, which can pose a risk of strangulation;
• Flying Heroes Superman Launcher, which can pose a risk of injuries to the eyes and to the face;
• Baby Magic Feed and Play Baby, which can pose a risk of obstructing the airway of a child but does not properly warn about this risk; and
• Warcraft Doomhammer, which can pose a risk of impact injury.

If your child gets hurt after using a product designed for kids, it is important to learn more about filing a claim for compensation. An experienced San Diego County product liability lawyer can discuss your options with you today. Contact the Walton Law Firm to speak with an attorney about your case.

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(image courtesy of Uberprutser)

Electronic cigarettes, also known as e-cigarettes or electronic nicotine delivery systems, have been “promoted as safer alternatives to traditional cigarettes,” according to a fact sheet from the National Institute on Drug Abuse. However, as a recent article in Scientific American explains, e-cigarettes have been linked to serious burn injuries caused by the explosion of these devices. While we do not yet have enough information to know about the health risks associated with e-cigarettes, we do know that they can cause serious burns to the hands and mouth, and in some cases can cause fractures and paralysis.

What else do you need to know about e-cigarettes and serious injuries? Can injury victims seek compensation by filing a lawsuit?

Learning More About Electronic Cigarettes As the fact sheet from the national Institute on Drug Abuse explains, electronic cigarettes are made up of three different parts. Each has a cartridge, “which holds a liquid solution containing varying amounts of nicotine, flavorings, and other chemicals.” These devices also contain a heating tool, also known as a vaporizer, and a source of power that is usually a lithium-ion battery. To get the e-cigarette to work, the user puffs on the device, which activates the heater. The heating device turns the cartridge liquid into vapor, which the user then inhales.

Using an e-cigarette is supposed to “simulate the act of tobacco smoking” and to deliver nicotine to its user “but with less of the toxic chemicals produced by burning tobacco leaves.” Yet these devices still provide a user with nicotine, which is a “highly addictive drug,” according to the fact sheet. However, as we mentioned previously, the chemical exposures from e-cigarettes do not appear to be the most immediate cause for concern. Rather, these devices literally are blowing up in the faces of users.

Explosions Caused By Lithium-Ion Batteries The injuries that have resulted thus far from exploding electronic cigarettes are serious, the Scientic American article underscores. The “trail of injuries” reported from these devices is a long one, and it reflects severe harms to users. For instance, a recent e-cigarette explosion left a man “with a hole in his tongue and burns on his hand.” A teen recently suffered damage to the teeth and eyes after an electronic cigarette exploded in a store. And late last year, a user was left “potentially paralyzed” from an e-cigarette explosion, which caused fractures to the bones in the user’s face and to his vertebrae.

Many other e-cigarette users have been hospitalized as a result of burn injuries, many with fire-degree burns to the face and torso. Californians have not been spared. A Southern California man required treatment at the University of California San Diego Burn Center after his e-cigarette exploded.

What causes these explosions? In short, the lithium-ion batteries can explode. While lithium-ion batteries are used in many consumer products, the design and shape of the e-cigarette makes an explosion more likely in the event that the lithium-ion battery fails. A report from the U.S. Fire Administration explains that, “in a lithium-ion battery, the solution can become overheated, reaching its boiling point and then rapidly expand and catch fire, causing the battery to explode.”

In other devices that rely on lithium-ion batteries—such as laptops or cell phones—the hard plastic cases prevent the batteries from causing injury. In e-cigarettes, however, “the explosion can lead the cylindrical container of the device to explode, too, causing the device to be propelled across the room like a bullet or a small rocket.”

If you recently sustained injuries caused by an e-cigarette, you may be able to seek compensation by filing a personal injury lawsuit. An experienced San Diego burn injury lawyer can assist you. Contact the Walton Law Firm to discuss your case today.

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Did your child ask for a Hoverboard for Christmas? Did you decide that the warm winter weather in San Diego would make for an amenable environment in which to learn how to use a Hoverboard? Regardless of whether children or adults use these devices, numerous reports suggest that serious personal injuries arise when people attempt to use these dangerous consumer products. According to a recent report from CNET.com, “despite their coolness, this tech fad has a dangerous side.”

Learning More About Hoverboards What is a Hoverboard? Perhaps you have seen these devices on television or on neighborhood streets. In short, they are self-balancing, two-wheeled scooters that quickly became “one of the hottest toys of the year,” according to the article. Celebrities can be seen gliding around on Hoverboards, while kids of all ages likely want a chance to ride one.

As the article explains, new Hoverboards really are more like “miniature Segways minus the handlebars.” They respond to the user’s movement, “moving forward when you lean forward and braking and reversing when you lean back.” Unlike a skateboard (another two-wheeled device), Hoverboard users face forward (just like with a Segway scooter). Very subtle movements of the “feet, legs, and torso” control the movement of the Hoverboard. The user’s physical movement also controls the speed. There are pressure-sensitive footpads that allow you to press harder to speed up and to let up on the pressure to slow down. As soon as a rider steps onto the Hoverboard, the device begins moving. As such, they are “tricky to mount and dismount.”

In addition to difficulties with mounting and dismounting, the lack of handlebars also prevents the user from having anything with which to steady him or herself. As the CNET.com article notes, “it’s easy to fall off while you get used to the board.”

Hoverboard Personal Injury Risks While these devices might look like they could be fun to use, there are two major injury risks that allegedly accompany the use of Hoverboards:

• Risk of the device exploding and catching on fire; and
• Risk of serious falls.

When it comes to the risk of fire, these dangerous products may in fact be defective. Given the number of Hoverboards that have exploded, “cities are banning them from roads and sidewalks,” while “airlines won’t let you bring them onto planes.” In addition, online retailers, including major ones like Amazon and Overstock, have decided to stop selling certain Hoverboard models and even have gone as far as to tell consumers to “trash ones they’ve already received.” There has been no official recall, however.

In addition to the risk of fire-related injuries, the difficulty of balancing and maneuvering on Hoverboards also makes fall-related injuries a serious problem. While physicians recommend using proper safety gear—such as a helmet, knee pads, wrist pads, and elbow pads—a fall can still result in severe injuries, including but not limited to:

• Traumatic brain injuries (TBIs);
• Neck injuries;
• Back injuries; and
• Broken bones.

Many new consumer products can pose serious risks to users. If you or someone you love sustained a serious injury while using a Hoverboard, you may be able to file a claim for compensation. You should discuss your case with an experienced San Diego personal injury attorney as soon as possible. Contact the Walton Law Firm today to learn more about how we can assist with your claim.

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