The Recall

According to the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) website, Werner has recalled five models of stepladders:

• 13 feet (MT-IAA-13A)
• 17 feet (MT-IAA-17A)
• 22 feet (MT-IAA-22A)
• 26 feet (Model MT-IAA-26)
• 26 feet (Model MT-IAA-26A)

Consumers can find the model number on the label located on the side of the rail. They should also look for the relevant date codes: 121744XX or 011844XX. If your ladder is subject to recall, you should immediately stop using it and take the ladder to the store for a refund.

According to the CPSC website, Werner received one report of the ladder breaking while being used, which caused injury to the consumer’s elbow and side. Unfortunately, this is not Werner’s first recall of its ladders. Interested consumers should search the CPSC website for other recalls that might affect them.

Common Defects

Stepladders should be strong enough to safely hold several hundred pounds but also stable enough not to move while a person is climbing. Unfortunately, some ladders have either a defective design or were manufactured with a defect, such as weakness in the materials used. In these situations, the ladder can wobble or collapse altogether, sending consumers sprawling.

Common defects that we see involving ladders include:

• Loose nails or bolts
• Corroded parts
• No slip pads on the ladder’s feet
• Malfunctioning locks
• Weak rungs that break or bend
• Incorrect load ratings
• Inadequate or absent warnings about safety hazards

Many consumers cannot identify whether there is a defect in the product, so it is important to hang onto the ladder after your injury. Your personal injury attorney will want to see the ladder and analyze it for any defects.

Defective Ladder Injuries

Victims suffer the kinds of injuries those who fall from heights generally suffer, including:

• Fractures, including compound fractures
• Soft tissue injuries, such as contusions, sprains, or strains
• Head injuries
• Traumatic brain injuries, including concussions
• Back injuries
• Spinal cord injuries
• Internal organ damage or internal bleeding

If the person fell from a significant height, or if they landed awkwardly, then they could die as a result of the fall.

Before you can bring a lawsuit for a defective ladder, you need to identify whether you used the ladder properly. A manufacturer can defend against a products liability lawsuit if you used the ladder in a manner that they did not expect. However, this will not be a problem in the vast majority of cases.

Consult with a Defective Ladder Attorney in Volusia County

Few falls are minor. Even falling a few feet can cause horrible injuries that require extensive medical treatment and time off from work to recuperate. At Bundza & Rodriguez, our products liability attorneys in Daytona Beach have helped many clients receive compensation. Let us help you.

Schedule your free consultation by calling 866-785-5470.

Resource:

cpsc.gov/Recalls/2018/Werner-Recalls-Aluminum-Ladders-Due-to-Fall-Hazard

The Case of the Exploding Wine Cooler

According to a complaint filed this June in Pinellas County Circuit Court, Tamra Marley was injured when a Seagram’s wine cooler suddenly and without warning exploded. Marley had purchased four wine coolers at a Save-A-Lot on March 7, 2016. As a result of the explosion, Marley alleges that she has suffered grievous bodily injuries that have caused disability, pain, scarring, and mental anguish. She counts as economic losses the amount of medical care and treatment necessary to tend to her injuries.

Marley has brought suit against Great Bay Distributors, alleging that they did not use sufficient care when handling their product. According to Marley and her attorneys, Great Bay breached an implied warranty of fitness, and that this breach resulted in the explosion. Marley has brought suit for more than $15,000 in damages, interest, and attorneys’ fees. She has asked for a trial by jury.

Defective Products

The recent case in Pinellas County is just one of many lawsuits brought around the state for defective products that injure consumers. If you have become a victim, you can sue a defendant under one of many different legal theories, including:

• Breach of warranty. Retailers make certain promises when they sell goods. A warranty can be express, but the law imposes some implied warranties. One implied warranty is the warranty of merchantability, which promises that a product will work as you expect it to. When the product fails, you can sue the retailer.

• Like all people, manufacturers and others owe people a duty to be careful. If they breach this duty, and they injure people in the process, they can be held liable. For example, a manufacturer might not be careful in how they designed a product, or a retailer might have handled goods improperly before selling them.

• Product liability. Our clients have also sued defendants for selling products that are unreasonably dangerous because of a defect in design or manufacture, or because of insufficient warnings or instructions.

Each of these legal theories has advantages and disadvantages, which your Delray Beach products liability attorney can explain to you. Leave it to them to decide which legal cause of action to pursue against the defendant.

Experienced Products Liability Attorneys

At Bundza & Rodriguez in Daytona Beach, our products liability team is here to serve you. As part of our representation, we have secured compensation for medical care, lost wages, pain and suffering, and mental anguish on behalf of our clients. To learn more about whether you have a legitimate claim, please contact us to schedule a free consultation. You can reach us by calling 386-252-5170 or by submitting our contact sheet.

Resource:

flarecord.com/stories/511470909-shopper-alleges-injuries-from-exploding-seagram-s-wine-cooler-bottle

This recall is only the most recent involving children’s clothing. Earlier in the month, a children’s romper was recalled because it posed a choking hazard, and an infant bodysuit was recalled for the same reason. When the unthinkable happens and a piece of defective clothing injures your child, you might be entitled to financial compensation.

Proving a Clothing Defect

We buy clothing expecting it to be safe. After all, the federal government has extensive regulations in place to make sure clothing does not pose a hazard to children. Nevertheless, dangerous clothing enters the stream of commerce regularly. As the PL Sleepwear situation shows, some clothing flatly fails to satisfy government safety standards. Other articles might pose a danger in a way that is hard to anticipate.

Regardless of how the article is defective, manufacturers and others are strictly liable when defective products injure consumers. Clothing can be defective in a few ways:

• Design defect. Something about how the article has been designed renders it unreasonably dangerous. For example, the collar on a baby bodysuit might be too small, posing a choking hazard.

• Manufacturing defect. There might not be anything wrong with the design. However, the way the individual article was made renders it unreasonably dangerous. For example, poorly sewn buttons might pop off, which your child might swallow.

• Inadequate warnings. A product can also be unreasonably dangerous if it does not come with adequate safety warnings or instructions.

Each situation is different, but our Daytona Beach personal injury lawyers are experienced at identifying clothing defects and then explaining them to juries.

Who Can You Hold Responsible?

If you or a loved one has been injured by defective clothing, you can sue anyone who pushed the product along the chain of distribution, for example:

• Manufacturers
• Wholesalers
• Suppliers
• Distributors
• Retailers

Collect Evidence

To receive compensation, you will need to prove that the clothing was unreasonably dangerous and that it caused your child’s injuries. To that end, you should preserve all helpful evidence, including:

• The article of clothing
• Any packaging you still have
• Medical records
• Medical bills
• Your own memories about what happened the day your child was injured
• If your child is old enough, then their own memories

Show this evidence to your personal injury lawyer, who will find it helpful when deciding whether you have a valid legal claim.

Contact a Personal Injury Lawyer Today

When children are injured, worried parents might feel helpless. Take control of the situation by reaching out to a Daytona Beach attorney to discuss your case. At Bundza & Rodriguez, we have helped many families receive financial compensation for injuries caused by a defective product. Call us today toll-free at 866-785-5470.

Resource:

cpsc.gov/Recalls?page=2

Furniture Injuries

Generally, defective furniture injures people because it is unstable. You might fall off a chair or stool when it tips over, or you might be trapped under a piece of furniture that tips over onto you. Large objects like dressers and bureaus can cause serious injuries because they are so heavy.

Regardless of how the accident occurred, victims can suffer the following injuries:

• Bruises
• Cuts
• Broken bones
• Crushed limbs
• Concussions
• Other traumatic brain injuries
• Organ damage
• Internal bleeding
• Spinal injuries
• Death

Children are especially vulnerable to furniture accidents. According to statistics, children made up 52% of emergency room visits caused by tip-over incidents. Children under 14 also made up 84% of reported fatalities.

Proving a Piece of Furniture is Defective

To receive compensation, accident victims will need to show that the piece of furniture was unreasonably dangerous because of a defect. Typically, defects can take the following forms:

• Design defect. Something about how the furniture has been designed makes it unreasonably dangerous. For example, a stool’s legs might be too close together, rendering the stool prone to tipping over. Often, every piece of furniture in the product line will be dangerous since they were all manufactured according to the defective design.

• Manufacturing defect. There might not be anything wrong with the design. However, the particular piece of furniture you bought was defective because it was not made according to plan. For example, a stool’s legs might have been joined improperly, thus rendering the stool unstable.

• Failure to warn. Typically, furniture is safe so no safety instructions are needed. However, children’s furniture sometimes has instructions or warnings telling you how to use the furniture safely. If these warnings are missing or inadequate, the product might be unreasonably dangerous.

Investigating Your Case

To help build the strongest case possible, you should save the defective piece of furniture so that your personal injury lawyer can look at it. Instead of throwing a defective crib in the trash or leaving it on the side of the road, keep it in your basement or attic.

Your lawyer will also want certain pieces of evidence, so gather it ahead of time:

• Medical records that show the severity of the injury
• Names of every doctor and hospital you have visited
• Proof of how much money you have spent treating your injuries (bills, receipts, etc.)
• Pictures of your injuries before they have had a chance to heal
• Any witnesses to the accident and their contact information
• Your own memories of what happened

A key focus will be whether you used the furniture in the manner it was intended to be used. If you didn’t, then you might not be able to receive compensation.

Lawyers Who Will Protect Your Rights

Furniture accidents are less rare than you might think, and injured victims are entitled to compensation. At Bundza & Rodriguez, we treat every case that comes through the door seriously. Our experienced Florida personal injury lawyers will investigate the surrounding circumstances and advise you about whether you have a legal claim. Since Florida gives injured victims only a limited amount of time to bring a lawsuit, you should not delay contacting us for your free consultation.

Resource:

cpsc.gov/s3fs-public/Product-Instability-or-Tip-Over-Report-Oct-2017_STAMPED.pdf?6zpgEccRRlWpm51koPCsRk8R2jsBp0Kd

Why Is Yaz Riskier Than Other Hormonal Contraceptives?

All hormonal contraceptives contain a hormone similar to progesterone, the hormone that increases after ovulation in a normal menstrual cycle. Progesterone prevents ovulation, because it sends a signal to the rest of the body that ovulation has already occurred, so it is not time for the ovaries to prepare another egg. The progesterone-like hormone in Yaz is a synthetic hormone called drospirenone. Bayer, the makers of Yaz, intentionally made a contraceptive pill that would prevent ovulation, like the body’s naturally occurring progesterone does, but that would avoid some of the usual progesterone side effects, especially weight gain.

Because it did not cause weight gain like other birth control pills, Yaz was quite popular when it first became available for sale in 2006. Unfortunately, though, women taking Yaz suffered blood clots at three times the rate of women taking other types of hormonal contraceptives. More than 200 women died from complications from blood clots related to the use of Yaz, and thousands were hospitalized.

The Yaz Lawsuits and Their Settlements

Since the market debut of Yaz in 2006, more than 11,000 women have filed product liability lawsuits against Bayer, claiming that Yaz or other contraceptives containing drospirenone were the cause of their blood clots, heart attacks, or strokes. In total, Bayer has paid more than two billion dollars in damages to patients who became ill from taking Yaz. The case law seems to show that, while Yaz is safe enough to remain on the market, it was the cause of illness in the women who have received settlements from Bayer related to their use of the drug.

Contact Us Today About Product Liability Lawsuits

If you have become ill from taking a prescription drug, even though you were taking the drug properly, you might have grounds for a product liability lawsuit. Contact Bundza & Rodriguez in Daytona Beach, Florida for a legal consultation.

The Accutane Lawsuits

Acne is a very common condition, especially in adolescents of both sexes and in women of childbearing age. Most of the time, it is easily managed with over-the-counter topical treatments. Still, severe acne is one of the most common reasons for visits to dermatologists. Accutane is one of the strongest medications dermatologists can prescribe for acne; they use is only as a last resort, when Retin-A cream, oral antibiotics, and oral contraceptives have been proven ineffective at treating that particular patient’s acne.

The product liability suits began when patients taking Accutane had severe side effects. Some of the side effects were psychiatric, in the form of suicidal thoughts, in some cases severe enough to lead to actual suicide attempts. Other patients suffered ulcerative colitis and inflammatory bowel disease. As a result of the suits, the manufacturer of Accutane was required to label the drug with a black box warning, informing patients of the risks of these side effects. In 2017, an appeals court overturned some of the earlier decisions. The reason for overturning the decisions was that, in the original case, some expert testimony had been suppressed or misinterpreted.

Contact Bundza & Rodriguez About Product Liability Cases

Much of the information you find online about the dangers of prescription drugs is little more than clickbait. In some cases, though, drugs may prove to carry greater risks of serious side effects than anyone realized when the drugs were first approved for sale. You may have grounds for a product liability lawsuit if you became seriously ill after taking a prescription drug as directed. Contact Bundza & Rodriguez in Daytona Beach, Florida for a legal consultation.

Resources:

propublica.org/article/tylenol-mcneil-fda-use-only-as-directed

judiciary.state.nj.us/attorneys/assets/opinions/appellate/published/a4698-14a0910-16.pdf

An Abundant Ingredient in Over-the-Counter Remedies

According to some sources, the maximum safe dose of acetaminophen is 4,000 mg per day, the equivalent of eight Extra Strength Tylenol pills, but in the wake of so many adverse events, some doctors recommend taking no more than 3,000 mg per day. It is easy enough to tell whether you have taken six Extra Strength Tylenol tablets in one day, but plenty of other over-the-counter medicines also contain acetaminophen, making it very easy to go above that dose. For example, if you have a bad cold and a headache, you might take one pill of Excedrin Migraine and some Dayquil to get through work, followed by Nyquil and Theraflu in the evening. The Excedrin Migraine alone has more than 3,000 mg of acetaminophen. Many of the lawsuits related to acetaminophen overdose involved patients who took several acetaminophen-containing OTC medicines to treat different symptoms of a minor illness.

A Florida case, brought by Charlotte Lee Thompson, involved a plaintiff who had taken only the doses deemed safe. She still became ill enough with liver disease to require hospitalization for ten days. Better product labeling and warnings about overdose risks could help prevent some of these cases. Laws restricting the amount of acetaminophen in any single dose of a prescription drug to 325 mg are already in effect, but the greatest risks of overdose involve OTC acetaminophen. Whenever you take medicine for pain, fever, or cold symptoms, be sure to read the label, so you know how much acetaminophen you are taking.

Contact Bundza & Rodriguez About Product Liability Cases

If you have become ill after using an over-the-counter medicine or other product as directed, you may have grounds for a product liability lawsuit. Contact Bundza & Rodriguez in Daytona Beach, Florida for a consultation.

Resource:

propublica.org/article/tylenol-mcneil-fda-use-only-as-directed