Philadelphia Injury Attorney Blog

The Ford Motor Company announced that it will recall over 1 million pickup trucks including the popular F-150 due to corrosion problems involving straps that hold fuel tanks to the truck. The recall effects 1.2 million older trucks sold or registered in 21 states, and it was noted that the corrosion problem was more prominent in colder regions due to corrosion from roadway salt. Ford announced that it will repair the trucks for free.

Models affected are 1997 to 2003 Ford F-150, 2004 F-150 Heritage, 1997-1999 F-250, 2002 to 2003 Lincoln Blackwood. This announcement follows another major recall involving Ford’s F series truck which has been one of the best selling vehicles in America.

In April, Ford expanded a recall of F-150 pickups to about 1.2 million vehicles due to front airbags which could deflate without the vehicle being involved in a crash.

The Philadelphia auto defect product liability and defective airbag law firm of Reiff & Bily salute Ford’s proactive stance in these recalls.

As an experienced Pennsylvania airbag defect lawyer who also litigates many auto defect cases involving seat belt design defects and flaws, it is important to understand that airbags and seat belts compliment each other in their function and new automotive technology has advanced to the point where airbag systems and occupant restraints are completely intertwined. Most airbag sensor modules report back to an event data recorder. A poorly designed airbag sensor will often deprive the occupant of pretensioner on the seat belt. Load limiters are specifically designed to work with airbags and if an airbag fails to deploy a seat belt can spool out dangerously exposing the occupant to a catastrophic injury and unfortunately many times a fatality. The intertwining of the smart systems controlling airbags and seat belts in vehicles requires a non-failure and proper design of the load limiters and pretensioners.

A poorly designed occupant classification sensor often results in the failure of an airbag to deploy. It is important in any type of airbag and seat belt failure case to immediately secure the vehicle and avoid spoilation of evidence so that valuable forensic evidence can be collected from the date recorders, as well as vehicle examination, to support a seat back or airbag defect claim.

Unfortunately, our office was just retained in a tragic case where a child was brain damaged and lost vision only to discover that the prior lawyer who handled the case never sent a non-spoilation letter and failed to preserve the evidence. Despite the fact that the first attorney has repeatedly informed the clients that the vehicle was in a secure and safe environment, the vehicle turned out to be left in a junk yard with the allegedly defective components cannibalized and the vehicle became a storage facility for used tires.

Continue reading "Airbags and Seat Belts Must Work Together As They Are Complimentary In Fashion and A Failure Of Any Components Can Be Catastrophic" »

Honda expanded a recall for allegedly defective airbags that may explode with dangerous force. The recall includes an additional 833,000 vehicles. Honda informs that the airbags can inflate with too much force and a casing can break causing a risk of injury or death.

Since 2008, Honda has recalled almost 1.7 million vehicles due to the airbag problem. Over-aggressive airbags pose a potentially dangerous situation to drivers and passengers and this experienced airbag defect lawyer salutes Honda’s efforts and advises anyone who owns or operates a Honda vehicle subject to the recall to immediately return the vehicle to the dealer for inspection and correction of a potential airbag defect.

As an experienced auto defect and car accident lawyer for decades, I was a person who went from almost never wearing a seat belt to always wearing a seat belt. l now always make sure that my airbags are properly operating without the sensor turned to an off position. It is well recognized that seat belts are the number one safety feature in vehicles but without supplementation of a properly operating airbag it may not be enough to avoid a catastrophic injury or wrongful death in a collision. Many vehicles have an acronym SRS on the steering wheel or dashboard which translated is a short cut for “supplemental restraint system". What this means is that airbags supplement seat belts. Trust me, I have investigated the most horrific accidents and tragedies that are seemingly beyond imagination which were caused by the failure to wear a seat belt or the failure of the seat belt, airbag, or SRS systems.

Most modern vehicles contain multiple airbags in various locations which are designed to inflate if an occupant is correctly restrained with a seat belt. There are various systems used in airbag and SRS designs and often due to manufacturing and design defects or sensor defects, the SRS system does not operate properly. Many systems have a light indicator on the dashboard which will stay lit or blink off and on if there is a noted problem or defect with the airbag or SRS system. If you notice this light, immediately take your car to the dealership as an improper airbag or SRS system can lead to catastrophic injury or death in an accident situation.

Continue reading "Your Seat Belt May Be The Number One Safety Feature In Your Automobile. However, Without A Properly Functioning Airbag, It Is Often Not Enough" »

Toyota announced another voluntary recall of approximately 308,000 SUVs from the 2007 to 2008 model years over fears of airbags not working in the event of certain accidents, or in the worse case scenario, opening without reason. The new Toyota recall affects 214,000 RAV and 94,000 Highlander/Highlander HV models from 2007 to 2008 model years with the recall involving the curtain shield airbag sensor assembly. Apparently it seems that sensors are failing which means that in the event of a rollover accident, the airbag may not open or in the worse case scenario, the airbag could open without and without an impact. Although Toyota claims that this is an unlikely event, they are issuing the recall and made a point of mentioning that the same is possible.

As an experienced Pennsylvania airbag defect lawyer, I am well aware of the dangers that can occur from an over-aggressive deployment and non-deployment or a faulty deployment. We urge all of the readers of this article to contact your Toyota dealership and take your car in immediately if it is one of the vehicles embodied by the recall notice. Chance favors the prepared man and we salute Toyota’s efforts in notifying consumers when it became aware of the problem.

If you or a loved one has suffered a catastrophic injury or fatality due to an alleged airbag defect, please feel free to contact one of our experienced Philadelphia airbag defect lawyers for a free, no obligation consultation. The Philadelphia airbag defect law firm of Reiff & Bily has recently joined forced with the legendary Beasley Firm and together have been awarded over $2 billion dollars for injured clients. We always offer a free, no obligation consultation. Contact us online at www.beasleyreifflawgroup.com or toll free at 1-800-588-0130.

According to news sources, Ford bowed to pressure from government regulators on Thursday, April 13, 2011 to widen the recall of America’s top selling vehicle - the F-150 pickup - due to the fact that its airbags deploy at the wrong time. The recall now covers nearly 1.2 million F-150's built for 2004 and 2005 model years and some 2006 models. The recall is based upon the fact that a potential electrical short can cause the airbags to inflate without a crash and injure drivers. Sources indicate that Ford had initially resisted the government’s wishes to expand the recall.

As experienced Pennsylvania airbag defect and and auto product liability lawyers, we salute the effort of regulators emphasizing public safety with their more aggressive behavior and quicker response to automobile defect and airbag problems once there is an awareness of the same. Our experienced Pennsylvania auto defect and airbag defect lawyers believe that the regulator’s actions indicate that it will be harder for other automakers to limit the size of future recalls. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration regulates car safety and has recorded evidence of 269 cases in which airbags deployed inadvertently resulting in 98 injuries.

Reiff & Bily has recently joined forces with the legendary Beasley Firm to form the Beasley Reiff Law Group. If you or a loved one has sustained a catastrophic injury or wrongful death due to an alleged airbag defect, please contact us online at www.beasleyreifflawgroup.com or toll free at 1-800-588-0130 for a free, no obligation consultation.

After a 2008 Toyota Corolla airbag failed to deploy after a vehicle hit a deer at 55 mph, the U.S. National Highway and Transportation Safety Authority was called in to investigate a potential airbag defect issue. Thankfully, no one was hurt in this accident. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration indicated that the possible recall could affect as many as 170,000 vehicles as the Corolla has been Toyota’s second best selling model after the Camry. Since 2009, Toyota has recalled more than 13.7 million vehicles in the United States to address safety complaints, with the most prominent being the unintended acceleration issue.

At the Philadelphia auto product liability and airbag defect firm of Reiff & Bily, we have had extensive experience investigating airbag defects. Airbags are supposed to meet the needs of the occupant in a variety of crash situations. In the last year, numerous other automobile manufacturers recalled their vehicles due to airbag defects and component failures. Many times smart airbag sensor systems fail and many times defective airbag design or installation can fool a smart airbag into not deploying when it should deploy or to over-aggressively deploy. The Philadelphia airbag defect lawyers of Reiff & Bily salute the efforts of NHTSA in investigating this potential hazardous situation and applaud Toyota’s efforts to further investigate a potentially hazardous problem. Our skilled Pennsylvania auto defect and defective airbag lawyers have acquired years of unmatched experience in fighting against some of the world’s largest automobile manufacturers and manufacturers of defective component parts with some of the highest record breaking results achieved for our clients injured by airbag defects.

Recently the Philadelphia airbag defect lawyers of Reiff & Bily have joined forces with the legendary Beasley Firm to form the Beasley Reiff Law Group. For a free, no obligation consultation, please contact us online at www.beasleyreifflawgroup.com or toll free at 1-800-588-0130.

As a Pennsylvania airbag defect lawyer who has represented victims who have suffered catastrophic injuries or wrongful deaths as a result of airbag defects since 1979, I applaud the efforts of Pennsylvania Representative Matthew Bradford (D-Dist 70) who introduced a bill to penalize fraudulent practices regarding airbag installation and reinstallation. Over the years, I have investigated many claims and have received phone calls from clients catastrophically injured or whose relatives were killed as a result of improperly installed airbags or airbags purchased on the second hand market which were unknowingly defective even before installation.

The Bradford Bill includes penalties for offenses outlined as follows:

Continue reading "Pennsylvania Airbag Defect Accident Lawyer Salutes Pennsylvania Legislator Matthew Bradford Who Proposed a Motor Vehicle Airbag Fraud Prevention Act" »

Recently a jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff in an inadvertent airbag deployment case involving a 1998 Cadillac. The plaintiff was driving down a gravel road when the vehicle’s airbag deployed without impact, crash, or any other reason. Repairs were made to the vehicle, including a replacement of the entire airbag system. Yet, several years later the plaintiff was driving the vehicle down a gravel road when the airbag again deployed without an impact, crash, or other reason.

Normally airbags are designed to deploy when a vehicle in forward motion decelerates rapidly. Most airbag systems are calibrated to sense vehicle deceleration corresponding to a frontal collision. However, unfortunately, sometimes airbags deploy at the wrong time and the inflation of the airbag becomes so sudden that the driver may be distracted, disoriented, or even knocked unconscious often resulting in catastrophic or fatal consequences.

As an experienced airbag defect lawyer, it appears that there has been an alarming increase in the number of injuries or fatalities as a result of airbag malfunction, including but not limited to inadvertent deployment. Many times inadvertent airbag deployments are caused by airbag sensor or electrical system defects. We have even reviewed some cases whether turning on the ignition can trigger the airbag deployment. Many manufacturers fail to utilize or design proper sensors or test programs that allow airbags to deploy even when the vehicle strikes a pothole or curb.

If you or a loved one is a victim of an inadvertent airbag deployment or other airbag defect injury, please contact one of our experienced Philadelphia airbag defect lawyers for a free, no obligation consultation.

As an experienced defective airbag attorney, I have had a number of occasions to download the black boxes of many automobiles with a technical expert. The black box is essentially an event data recorder and is a small square box tucked safely away in an inconspicuous position either under the dash or under the front seat of most vehicles. The black box is supposed to record engine speeds, brake acceleration, throttle positions, airbag data, and other information to determine the cause of an accident.

Recently, I participated in a black box download with an expert of one of the Japanese automakers and had difficulty with the manufacturer accessing the black box data due to the fact that the Japanese manufacturer told us that the information contained therein was proprietary and that only their experts could review the information. This attempted roadblock necessitated extensive legal maneuvering and court sanctions to get the correct black box information available for review by our expert.

Recently a Wall Street Journal article addressed this similar issue. Other plaintiffs’ lawyers and clients in auto accident cases note that they have also butted heads with Toyota over access to its black box data. The article noted by contrast that three major Detroit automakers have a black box format that can be read without the involvement of the auto manufacturer using a commercially available tool. In our specific case, the Japanese manufacturer and their lawyers fought at every step and turn to avoid our retrieving the correct black box download data. Our experienced airbag defect lawyers were ultimately successful in the prosecution of our claim involving this overaggressive deployment of an airbag.

Using the Li’l Abner “any plain fool can see" theory, my own gut instinct told me that if there was anything helpful to the automobile manufacturer in their legal process, the same would have clearly been provided. However, if the information was detrimental to a case against them, they would not provide it without a strong and determined fight. Adversity causes some lawyers to break and others to fight harder and break records.

I was shocked to find a set of used Saturn S airbags for sale on EBay for a bid of $19.99. The heading stated “They will make a great replacement for your damaged airbags and are ready to be installed."

As a lawyer who handled catastrophic injury cases involving defective airbags, I was somewhat dismayed to see this advertisement due to the fact that the airbag is probably one of the most important safety features of any car. An airbag is intended to protect the driver or passenger from severe injuries or death in a crash. Airbags must be installed in accordance with the manufacturer’s specifications which requires a certain amount of expertise. In particular, the ad noted that the seller made no warranty, express or implied, as to the fitness of the used airbags and they were being sold “as is." Furthermore, the ad noted that the used airbags were not tested to meet any safety standards and the only guarantee was that the parts will fit the vehicles listed.

As an experienced airbag defect lawyer, I have handled many cases involving airbag defects, and even with expert installation by the manufacturer, I feel so strongly about purchasing and selling used airbags that I am forced to speak out. It is possible that while installing or servicing an airbag, it could improperly explode and cause extreme injuries. Airbag installation and servicing requires expert training and one should not look to save money on such essential safety equipment. In my humble opinion as an airbag defect lawyer, this may be a catastrophic accident and tragedy waiting to happen.

BMW A.G. has recalled 200,000 vehicles due to the fact that they are concerned that the front passenger airbags may not deploy in a crash. The German automaker noted that the recall involves a 2006 3-Series, the 2004-2006 5-Series and 2004-2006 X3 sport utility vehicle in the U.S. The National Highway and Traffic Safety Administration stated in a posting on its website that small cracks could develop in the seat detection mat and deactivate the front passenger airbags. It is further advised that the airbag warning lamp and the passenger airbag “on-off lamp" would remain on. BMW advised that there were no accidents or injuries reported due to this alleged recall defect.

NHTSA opened an investigation into the issue in September 2007 and upgraded its probe in January. In addition to the vehicle under the above recall, the ongoing investigation also includes the 2004-2006 Z4, 2006 X5, 2006-6 Series and some 2004-2006 7-Series vehicles. NHTSA has stated that BMW received 23,739 RT claims over the airbag system by early January. To respond to this problem, BMW said it will extend its warranty to 10 years without any mileage limit for the following vehicles: 2006 6-Series, 2006 3-Series with standard seats, 2004-2005 Z4, 2004-2006 7-Series, 2006 X5, and 2004-2006 5-Series with comfort seats. BMW stated that under the extended warranty program, the detection mat in the vehicle with the airbag system problems would be replaced at no charge to the customer. For more information, owners are asked to contact the manufacturer at 1-800-525-7417 or NHTSA at 1-888-327-4236.

The Pennsylvania airbag defect and SUV rollover law firm of Reiff & Bily has been representing victims (in Pennsylvania and throughout the United States) who have been injured as a result of a defective airbag deployment or non-deployment. Airbags when properly designed prevent death and catastrophic injury. Unfortunately, many airbag systems were designed poorly, resulting in thousands of injuries and fatalities. An individual should assume that an airbag will provide an extra level of protection for drivers and passengers of motor vehicles. Many times defective airbags fail to deploy all together or deploy with too much force, causing injuries such as paralysis, severed brain stems, broken necks, blinding, brain hemorrhages, temporomandibular joint syndrome, facial bone fractures, disfigurement, burst hearts, and other serious injuries or fatalities. Surprisingly, even a low impact or low speed collision can cause an overly aggressive airbags to deploy with too much force, causing an injury that would not have occurred had this defectively designed airbag not been involved.

Continue reading "PHILADELPHIA AIRBAG DEFECT AND SUV ROLLOVER ATTORNEY SALUTES BMW USA IN THEIR RECALL OF 200,000 CARS AND SMALL SUVs FOR AIRBAG DEFECT - A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION FOR CONSUMER SAFETY." »