Toasters Recalled for Fire Hazards Before Product Liability Claims Arise

Hamilton Beach Brands is a maker of home appliances such as blenders, mixers, toasters, irons and air purifiers and commercial restaurant equipments marketed mainly in the US, Canada and Mexico since 1910.

It’s been more than a century since they built their name as a maker of appliances. Therefore, Hamilton Beach Brands would definitely not allow any single product defect to ruin their reputation.

However, after the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) found out that a Hamilton Beach Brands’ product presents a fire hazard to consumers, they immediately announced for a nationwide product recall.

The said product being recalled is the Hamilton Beach Brands’ classic chrome 2-slice toaster. The CPSC discovered that when the toaster is plugged into an outlet, the heating mechanism starts to heat up even though the toaster is still technically off. Model 2602 toasters are involved in the said product recall.

Consumers can check their Hamilton Beach Brands’ toaster model number printed at the bottom of the toaster. The CPSC further described the full detail of the Hamilton Beach product recall in a report.

Before claims for product liability arise, Hamilton Beach Brands has advised the consumers to contact them for instructions on how to obtain a replacement toaster. This is will further protect their long-established name and hard earned reputation.

The Hamilton Beach Brands provided their contact details regarding the said product recall. Consumers can call Hamilton Beach at (800) 576-6600 anytime or they may visit their website at www.hamiltonbeach.com.

The manufacturing companies have their lawful obligation regarding the quality of their product. If the Hamilton Beach Brands would not cooperate with the product recall ordered by the CPSC, a product liability claim can be filed by the consumers against the companies, producers or manufacturers if ever personal injuries arise due to negligence and marketing of sub-standard products or services.

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Product Recall to Hit Toy Stores Again After Seeing Possible Hazards on Toys

Holidays are approaching so fast and this is what shoppers are definitely waiting for. Of course, holidays are for the entire family. Mostly during shopping, parents can’t prevent their kids from grabbing toys from the toy stores.

Despite the strict monitoring for safe toys and other products for children, there are still some suspiciously hazardous toys that still manage to sneak into the toy store shelves.

According from a report released by the US Public Interest Research Group (PIRG), just over a dozen toys on toy stores are found violating the federal safety standards. Lead and phthalates are still found present in many toys being sold in the department stores.

Phthalates are primarily used to increase the flexibility, transparency, durability and longevity of a plastic material. However, due to many health concerns, products containing said chemical substance are being phased out most specially toys and baby products.

The toys which are believed to be possible with dangerous chemical contents include the whirly wheel, baby plastic books, wooden blocks and the Sesame Street Oscar dolls.

The research group also warned the parents that too loud toys could also cause hearing impairment to their children.

Since 1990 to 2010, statistics shows that nearly forty percent (40%) of choking fatalities are reported to the government. Balloon is included on the list of hazardous toys that causes fatalities to children.

The toy industry points out that the government figures have been declining in national product recalls for toys for the previous years. Figures show reduction from 172 product recalls in 2008; 50 in 2009; 46 in 2010; to 34 in 2011. Toys and baby product recalls linked to lead dropped down from 19 in 2008 to only 4 this year.

On 2008, the PIRG set a law for more powerful standards for children’s products like a strict limit on lead and other dangerous chemicals. The law was passed to ensure that only a hundred percent safe products for children could be displayed on toy stores.

The toy industry Association for toy safety standards pleaded that they are confident that all toys on stores are safe since the industry had been working on this for several years.

However, despite the association’s confidence, the Public Interest Research Group still conducted a test for children’s products as a safety measure.

Children are very vulnerable to diseases and other health threats, therefore proper safety precautions should be observed not only by the parents but as well as the proper authorities concerned in monitoring the safety of children’s products. The toy industry might as well implement a stronger standard for safe children’s toys to avoid encountering more product liability claims and other serious problems related into the same.

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Product Liability Claim Filed Against A Huge German Automaker

A Mercedes Benz owner, Cedric Chan of California recently filed a product liability lawsuit against the huge German automaker – Mercedes Benz. In the lawsuit, Chan is claiming that the engine of the vehicle does not perform well as promised by the automaker.

According to the lawsuit, since Chan purchased the pre–owned 2007 Mercedes Benz E63 AMG in 2008, he has spent approximately $4,600. Later on, the vehicle required even more engine repairs which necessarily mean more expenses to Chan until he decided to trade it in acquiring a $25,000 loss.

Allegedly, Daimler, the defendant, has known about the defects in its M156 engines since it was first launched in the market on 2007 and has revised service bulletins for mechanics covering engine parts replacement.

Mercedes Benz M156 engine is a 6.2 liter V8 engine in its AMG vehicles beginning in the 2007 model year. It was the first V8 car engine designed independently by Mercedes – Benz subsidiary Mercedes –AMG.

The product liability lawsuit was filed before the federal court of New Jersey. The lawsuit is seeking class action status in behalf of California consumers who have purchased Mercedes Benz AMG with M156 engine from 2007 to 2011.

As a product owner, Chan is expected to get the product quality that is being described in the Mercedes Benz advertisement for its AMG products.

Under the strict liability claim, rather than focusing on the negligence of the manufacturer, strict product liability claims focus on the product itself. The manufacturer is held liable if the product is defective, even if the manufacturer was not negligent for the product defect.

However, in the strict product liability claim, the complainant must prove that the defendant’s conduct fail to comply with the relevant standard of care. Therefore, it would be a long and complicated battle between Chan and the huge German automaker. Chan must have the best attorney services here for a sure win.

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FDA Investigating Excessive Radiation on California Hospitals

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is now investigating the several reported cases of over-radiation at California hospitals because of potentially defective CT scans.

Two California hospitals, Glendale Adventist Medical Center and Providence St. Joseph Medical Center, are under scrutiny for excessive radiation and unsafe medical scans.

The investigation on other hospitals came right on the heels of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles after patients reported lost their hair or experienced skin redness. 260 patients were reported by the hospital to have been exposed to excess radiation.

Glendale Adventist claimed that its radiation problem was related to a specialty scan which has already been discontinued by the hospital. However, the FDA is still trying to determine whether the over radiation was caused by human error or a problem with CT equipment.

Both Cedars and Glendale use scanners from General Electric but the FDA has also received reports over problems with different brands of scanners, including models from Toshiba.

While brain scans were originally used to diagnose strokes, CT scans have become popular because they offer a cheap, quick and painless way for doctors to evaluate trauma, belly pain, seizures, chronic headaches and other ailments.

Medical errors is one of the leading causes of death and injury, around 98,000 people die in U.S. hospitals each year because of medical errors.

Medical treatment, even if it is cheap should have the same quality of care and efficacy as any other treatment. Likewise, the hospital staff owes their patients a duty of care and diligence when running medical tests or other forms of treatment.

If you had the misfortune of being a victim of medical error or malpractice, you have the right to file for damages against the medical facility. If it is also proven that the manufacturer of the medical equipments if to blame for the cause of the injury, such as excessive radiation, a product liability claim may also be instituted against them.

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