FEDERAL REGULATORS HAVE TURNED TO RETAILERS TO CONDUCT TWO HUGE RECALLS OF POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS CRIBS AND BASSINETS - RETAILERS ARE SEEKING COMPENSATION FROM A READING, PA COMPANY - PHILADELPHIA PRODUCTS LIABILITY LAWYER, JEFFREY REIFF, EXPLORES LOOPHOLE
According the Wall Street Journal, Federal Regulators have turned to retailers to conduct two huge recalls of potentially dangerous cribs and bassinets. This is an unusual request highlighting gaps in a recall system based on voluntary action by manufacturers and has lead all marked stores and other retailers to get tough with a Reading, Pennsylvania company. According the Wall Street Journal, recalls of the Simplicity brand of children products from last month of 900,000 convertible bassinets and another on Wednesday of 600,000 cribs have saddled retailers with headaches and expenses and halting product sales and issuing customer refunds. Many retailers are seeking compensation from the new owner of the Simplicity brand, SFCA, Inc. of Reading, PA, which bought the assets and brand of Simplicity Inc. at a public auction in April, after the company went out of business the month before. SFCA says it is not liable for products made before the acquisition and has refused to conduct a recall of the defective goods which have been linked to several infant deaths. SFCA still argues that although it is not liable for the recalled products, it says “it values its good relationship with its retail customers” and is “working in close cooperation with retailers to help facilitate all aspects of the recall”. Initially after removing all Simplicity bassinets from its 3,500 stores and its website, WalMart said it has returned to its store shelves the models deemed safe and still carries Simplicity products that are made by the defunct manufacturer. For more information on this story, please link to the Wall Street Journal article. (Wall Street Journal article)
The Consumer Products Safety Commission commenced their investigation and recall after the August 21st death of 5 month old Kennedy Brotherton Jones. A year ago, 4 month old Katelyn Marie Simon of Noel, Missouri was found dead, hanging partially out of her bassinet and the incident was blamed on the design of the bassinet and ruled the death an accident. Clearly this case has revealed a loophole in the law said Sally Greenberg, an Executive Director at the National Consumers League. “You cannot have a Consumer Safety Product system that works effectively if companies are allowed to escape responsibility by going out of business”. Retailers have now stepped up to the plate because of the situation with Simplicity going bankrupt, said Juli Vallesa, a Commission spokesperson. The Commission noted that Simplicity 3-in-1 and 4-in-1 convertible bassinets had metal bars spaced further apart than 2 3/8 inches, which is the maximum distance allowed under Federal Safety Standards. It noted that the metal bars were covered by a fabric flap attached by velcro. “If the velcro is not properly re-secured when the flap is adjusted, an infant can slip through the opening and become entrapped in the metal bars and suffocate”, the Commission said in its statement. (Consumer Products Safety Commission)
Products can be purchased at many retail stores, wholesalers, supermarkets or even speciality outlets and are all manufactured with an implicit guarantee that the purchased product is not defective. Products that are either defective or dangerous can cause injury or even death to thousands of people in Pennsylvania every year. Under the protection of product liability law in Pennsylvania, consumers are often able to recover monetary damages stemming from or relating to their injuries. Under Pennsylvania law, products must meet certain consumer safety requirements when being used in a lawful and normal manner.
Reiff and Bily is a products liability law firm specializing in severe and catastrophic personal injuries. We have almost 30 years of experience handling product liability cases throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. We are available to answer any of your questions regarding product liability. We offer no obligation free and confidential evaluations by phone or through our website. Please contact us today at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com if you have any questions or concerns.
