Philadelphia Injury Attorney Blog

As an avid biker and biking accident lawyer in Philadelphia who travels an average of 50 to 60 miles per week on a bicycle, I am well aware of the accidents that can occur on improperly assembled bicycles. In the last week, even though I purchased a new bike two months ago, a component of my bike failed and I narrowly escaped disastrous consequences.

Recently, a retail store known as Meijer recalled bicycles that were allegedly assembled on site at Meijer stores. The recall notice stated that there were dozens of reports of pedals detaching or coming loose during use, including 16 reports of injuries. The bicycle recall was issued by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) naming various models of Huffy, Iron Horse, Mongoose, Northwoods, Pacific, Razor, and Schwinn bicycles, in total approximately 68,000 bicycle units. The hazard posed was noted to be that the pedals could loosen or detach during use, causing a fall hazard to riders. The bicycles were sold between March 2012 and August 2012 and have a Serv-U-Success assembly sticker attached. All riders and consumers should immediately stop using the recalled bicycles and return them to any Meijer store for a full refund or replacement bicycle of the same type or value and you will also receive a $10 store coupon. Meijer may be contacted directly at (800) 927-8699 for more information.

Continue reading "Bicycle Mechanic Inspection: A Step Often Skipped by Those Buying a Bike Online or at a Retail Store" »

Recently, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) released a statement recalling 17,000 bicycles. Three leading bicycle brands affected by the recall: GT, Giant, and Trek Bicycles are being recalled because of a defect involving the SR Suntour Suspension Forks. It has been reported that the SR Suntour suspension fork's internal support tubes can break causing serious injuries to those riding on bikes equipped with these suspension forks.

GT, Giant, and Trek Bicycles equipped with the faulty SR Suntour suspension forks were sold at specialty bicycle stores nationwide from April 2011 through March 2012. The CPSC has said that consumers should stop using bicycles with SR Suntour Suspension Forks and immediately take these bicycles to any authorized GT, Giant, or Trek dealer for a free repair.

While SR Suntour has not explicitly mentioned the reason for the recall, it should be noted that SR Suntour has received 12 reports of incidents involving the suspension forks.

As we approach summer, it’s important to make sure your bicycle is functioning correctly before hitting the streets. In Philadelphia, it is reported that 300,000 people ride a bicycle at least once a month during the summer. This is on top of the nearly 36,000 people that ride a bicycle to work at least once a month, year-round in Philadelphia.

However, with the increase of riders comes the increase in accidents. Bicycle accidents in Philadelphia can cause bruises, lacerations, road rash, burns, concussions, broken bones, head injuries, and traumatic brain injuries. Regardless of how and why a bicycle accident occurs, it’s important to seek medical attention immediately following a bicycle accident.

The Pennsylvania bicycle accident law firm of Reiff and Bily remains committed to bicycle safety and always offers a free, no obligation consultation to those injured in bicycle accidents caused by the fault of another or due to a defectively designed bicycle, a defectively manufactured bicycle, or defectively designed bicycle parts. If you or a loved one has been injured in a bicycle crash or while riding on a bike equipped with the recently recalled SR Suntour Suspension Forks, please contact one of our experienced bicycle accident attorneys for a free consultation at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

The U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in conjunction with Fuji Bikes announced a recall of Fuji Saratoga Women’s Bicycles. The recall came after 12 women sustained injuries when the frames on their Fuji Saratoga bicycles broke. According to a CPSC release, Fuji recommended that anyone who has purchased the Fuji Saratoga women’s bike “stop riding the recalled bicycle immediately” and return the bike to any authorized Fuji bicycle dealer for a free replacement frame.

As experienced product liability attorneys in Pennsylvania, who are also avid bicyclists, we have independently investigated many bicycle manufacturing defects involving bicycle frames. Many experienced bicyclists and retailers of bicycles will tell you that many Chinese manufactured bikes are “soft metal junk”. Yes, they may look new and shiny in the store, but many times the quality of construction and manufacture is just not there.

Approximately 60% of the world’s bicycles are now being made in China, and we have independently investigated a number of problems with Chinese bike frames made of carbon fiber, as well as steel and aluminum. While there certainly are some excellent quality carbon and metal bicycle frame manufacturers in China, chances are that if the bike looks shiny and glitters at a price too good to be true, quality may be lacking and can often lead to frame and component failures which result in bicycle accidents.

The experienced Philadelphia bicycle accident lawyers of Reiff and Bily are well attuned to the problems of manufacturing defects and safety issues concerning bicycles that lead to serious injury. We always offer a free, no obligation consultation to cyclists who have been involved in a serious bicycle accident and suffered serious personal injury. For more information, please contact us toll free at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

As an avid bicyclist and Philadelphia bicycle accident lawyer who has represented bicycle accident victims seriously injured in bicycle traffic accidents for more then 30 years, I salute the Pennsylvania Senate’s approval of a Bill known as the “Safe Passing Law". The “Safe Passing Law" requires cars to leave a 4 foot clearance when passing a bicyclist and it applies in Pennsylvania cities, suburbs, and rural areas.

In Philadelphia and surrounding counties, even despite placement of bicycle traffic lanes adjacent to traffic, many avid cyclists know that they have had a close call by someone who was ignorant of the cyclist or has buzzed by them in an alarming way almost causing, or in fact actually causing, a catastrophic injury. Personally, I was almost struck by a SEPTA bus while riding my bicycle in a bicycle lane, causing me to flip over the handle bars and break my wrist. I have represented bicyclists who have suffered broken bones, brain injuries, amputations, and in the worse cases a wrongful death when they were struck by a motorist ignorant of their rights on the road. Hopefully the new “Safe Passing Law" with proper enforcement by law enforcement officials will serve to educate other motorists on how to properly and safely pass a bicyclist. It will be interesting to observe how the new bicycle passing law is enforced, and whether the penalties have enough teeth to deter wrongdoers. Only time will tell.

The Pennsylvania bicycle accident law firm of Reiff and Bily remains committed to bicyclist safety and always offers a free, no obligation consultation to those injured in bicycle accidents caused by the fault of another or due to a defectively designed bicycle, a defectively manufactured bicycle, or a defectively designed bicycle component part.