Flammable Clothing and Bedding Material – Are You Wearing Or Sleeping On A Dangerous Material?
Flammable clothing and bedding are very dangerous and often times cause death and disfigurement to unsuspecting consumers due to serious burn injuries. If your clothing catches fire, flames may spread quickly through the clothing, sometimes causing the material to melt onto your skin, and create severe and disfiguring burns all over your body. If you bedding catches fire, especially if you’re sleeping, your temple of relaxation could become a death trap. Depending on the type of fabric, textile construction, weaves, weight, and finish, as well as looseness of fit, certain materials, when ignited accidentally, can pose a serious risk of a burn injury or even death. The Pennsylvania burn injury and product liability lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling flammable clothing and bedding claims since 1979.
The one of the consumer product laws passed in 1953 was the Flammable Fabrics Act (FFA) to regulate the manufacture of highly flammable clothing due to an epidemic of burns from flammable children’s clothing in the 1940s. In 1967, Congress amended the FFA to expand coverage to include interior furnishings as well as paper, plastic, foam, and other materials used in wearing apparel and interior furnishings. Responsibility for administering the FFA was transferred to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) when it was created in 1972. Under the FFA, the CPSC can issue mandatory flammability standards for manufacturers, importers, distributors, and retailers of fabric and garments. After standards for sleepwear were loosened in 1996, an increase in clothing burns among young children wearing loose sleep garments was observed. Despite efforts by the CPSC, injuries resulting from flammable clothing and fabric still remain a danger.
Clothing that fits tighter to the body or is made out of tightly woven fabric is safer than loose-fitting clothing. Wool burns very slowly and is difficult to ignite as compared to cotton, which burns much easier and quicker. Rayon (a manufactured alternative to silk) ignites easily, but burns slower than cotton. Silk is much less flammable compared to rayon. Nylon is less flammable as well, but melts and can adhere to the skin. These materials are not only found in nightwear and casual clothing, but also work apparel and bedding. Often flammable materials are used in the manufacturing of children’s clothing and bedding and unsuspecting parents are left with tragic consequences. It is important that if you work in an area that has fire hazards to wear flame resistant or fireproof apparel.
The bedding you sleep on might be just as dangerous. There are standards of regulations to determine how flammable carpets, rugs, and mattresses are. These standards are meant to prevent a fire from spreading or to determine how fast and flammable a material might be. The standard for mattresses and mattress pads was enacted due to the frequency of cigarette ignition. Under the Code of Federal Regulations, title 16 part 1632, the standard is meant to be a guideline for testing bedding to determine the ignition resistance of a mattress or a mattress pad when exposed to a lit cigarette. This does not include sleeping bags, pillows, waterbeds, and sofas.
A report by the CPSC says that in 2002, there were 11,900 fires, 1,170 injuries, and 380 deaths due to flammable bedding. Flammable bedding was responsible for approximately $269.2 million in property loss. The most common courses of fire were ignited from smoking materials (cigarettes or cigars) and candles, matches, or lighters. Smoking material ignition was also the most common cause of fire related death (approximately 55%).
When garment or bedding standards are violated and a person of any age is burned as a result of unsafe clothing or bedding material, an investigation to determine who is liable for the violation should include a review of actions or inactions of the manufacturers, importers, distributors, and retailers. Whoever started the fire or fire hazard might be liable for negligence. If a child is injured due to flammable clothing or bedding at a day care center or under hired supervision, the supervisors might also be liable. It is important to be careful when wearing any type of clothing or have bedding near open flames or other fire hazards. Common sources of fire hazards in the home include candles, matches, cigarettes and lighters, fireplaces, space heaters, electrical issues (short circuits or sparking), and kitchen stoves.
Injuries from flammable clothing or bedding include burns, scaring, asphyxiation or smoke inhalation, damage to property, and death. If the clothing you are wearing catches fire, try to remove the clothing to prevent being burned and as always stop, drop, and roll. Call 911 to report the fire and for burn treatment. Make sure smoke detectors are in proper operating condition and if you have children, teach them proper fire safety and its dangers. Before bed, be certain to blow out candles or incense and put out any fires or cigarettes. Keep in mind that fire or flame resistant or retardant materials are still flammable (inflammable or combustible), but are slower to ignite or burn. Only material that is fireproof, non-combustible, or non-flammable will not burn.
To recover compensation for injuries suffered as a result of highly flammable clothing or bedding, there must be proof that: (1) the clothing or bedding was defective and unreasonably dangerous because it was highly or unusually flammable; (2) the defect in the clothing or bedding caused the injuries; (3) the defendant(s) sold the clothing or the fabric from which the clothing or bedding was fabricated or an element of the finished product; and (4) the defect in the clothing, fabric, bedding, or other element existed at the time of the sale by the manufacturer, distributor, or seller.
Companies that manufacture or sell flammable clothing have strict liability for injuries that result from inadequate safety standards. This is known as product liability since the manufactures, distributors, and sellers within the retail chain may be liable for defective products they produce or sell. Product liability is a tort, which means that you were wronged (injured) through a fault of another and you may have the right to bring legal action against the companies responsible for your injuries. The restatement of torts provides remedies for negligence and strict liability, which includes: manufacturing defects (manufactured with defective material or strays from the original safe design); design defects (foreseeable risks that could have been avoided with a different design); inadequate instructions and warning defects (failure to provide safe instructions or warnings that could prevent foreseeable injuries); and the legal standards appropriate to each.
Pennsylvania’s Restatement 402A of torts dictates the doctrine of strict liability for products which result in injuries. Strict liability means that the seller, distributor, and manufacturer are liable for any injuries caused through their actions, inactions, or products even if they are without fault (negligence). The seller, reseller, distributor, and manufacturer may be held strictly liable for damages to an injured party if a product they produce is sold in a defective condition and is unreasonably dangerous to the consumer if (1) the seller, reseller, distributor, or manufacturer are engaged in the business of selling that specific product, and (2) if the product is expected to and does reach the consumer without a substantial change in the condition in which it is sold.
In essence what this means if that if a company that normally sells a product places it within the stream of commerce and the product is not modified, and it is sold in a defective condition, there exists strict liability for any resulting injuries. If a highly flammable product were sold with the knowledge that is highly flammable and dangerous in its current condition, there would be strict liability imposed upon the manufacturer and others within the stream of commerce for resulting injuries.
The Pennsylvania product liability lawyers at Reiff and Bily work on a contingent fee basis, charging a small percentage of the recovery. They will not get paid one cent unless there is a successful recovery. They have successfully handled flammable clothing and bedding claims, successfully recovering in excess of $150 million dollars from their opponents for physical injuries and emotional damages.
If you are in need of an attorney because you or someone you love has suffered an injury due to flammable clothing or bedding accident, please call the experienced Pennsylvania burn injury lawyers at the law firm of Reiff and Bily.
