Chances Are There Are Other Similar Incidents That Occurred Prior To Your Personal Injury Case Which May Be One Of The Best And Most Effective Tools To Prove Your Claim.
As an experienced Pennsylvania personal injury and catastrophic accident lawyer since 1979 who has handled thousands upon thousands of serious injury cases, I am well aware that other similar incidents or OSI’s are one of the most valuable tools in our arsenal in representing injured claimants. Certainly the defendant in any product liability or accident case will try to state that your case is unique and was simply an accident and that bad things sometimes happen to good people. Our experienced Pennsylvania injury litigators have been able to successfully demonstrate by use of OSI’s that many times defendants knew or should have known about a product defect or problematic situation from other litigated cases. In fact, I was a victim of a defective product claim and despite the fact the manufacturer of the product told me that my situation was unique, a careful and detailed investigation revealed that the manufacturer of the product not only was familiar with other similar incidents but, in fact, redesigned and remodeled the product to avoid the dangerous situation which was occurring and causing injuries and death.
In a recent case brought against the Ford Motor Company, evidence presented indicated that Ford was aware of 26 prior identical accidents caused by detreading of tires resulting in a loss of control and death or serious injury to the claimants. Ford Motor Company sold 4 million Explorer SUV’s in North America from 1990 to 2001. Many of these vehicles were susceptible to handling defects causing vehicle rollover. The plaintiff’s lawyer introduced evidence showing that Ford was aware of other similar instances and furthermore, spent $3.5 million dollars correcting these defects in Venezuela but ignored its own engineers’ recommendations and chose not to spend $500 million needed to fix the Explorers on the road in North America. The jurors deliberated for 32 days and delivered a unanimous verdict against Ford. The defendant’s last pre-trial offer was $1.2 million and the plaintiff’s last pre-trial demand was $3.1 million. However, as a result of the verdict, the plaintiff will receive $13.4 million for past and future medical expenses and $10 million for suffering and loss. Ford was found to be 91.5% liable and the tire manufacturer was found to be 7% liable. Additionally, plaintiff’s counsel was awarded approximately $293,000 in costs.
If you or a loved one was injured as a result of a defective product, please contact one of our experienced serious injury and wrongful death lawyers at Reiff & Bily for a free no obligation consultation at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.
