July 27, 2010

Pennsylvania Man With Autism Left in Hot Car by Caregiver Dies

A 20-year old autistic man died of hyperthermia after being left in a hot van for more than 5 hours following a trip to a suburban Philadelphia theme park. The victim, Brian Nevins, was a resident at Woods Services, a Langhorne, PA-based organization that provides support and services to people with severe disabilities.

Middletown Township police say the man was left in the van on the Woods Services campus for five hours after a trip to Sesame Place. A spokeswoman for Woods Services stated that a staff person has been suspended, but the investigation continues.

Our hearts and prayers go out to the family of Brian Nevins who was a vulnerable and defenseless victim.

If you or a loved one has been injured as the result of negligence in an assisted living facility or nursing home, please contact one of our experienced Philadelphia lawyers for a free consultation at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

July 8, 2010

Duck Boat Tourist Attraction Collision In Philadelphia With At Least 37 Adults and Children Aboard With 2 Missing - Was This Preventable?

A famous Philadelphia tourist attraction duck boat packed with tourists on a steamy July afternoon crashed at approximately 2:30 p.m. sending 37 adults and children into the Delaware River. At the time of this writing two passengers are missing, a 17-year girl and a 19-year old man and marine units are searching the river with sonar equipment. The Coast Guard has recovered 35 individuals. According to witness Talmadge Robinson, the duck boat was stopped on the river when the collision occurred. The witness was sitting ashore when he saw the barge approaching the immobile and disabled duck Boat. There was a loud bang as the duck Boat was literally “a sitting duck”. People were screaming. According to the witness, the tug boat had enough time to avoid the Duck Boat. Many of the children swam to the Camden side, not wearing life jackets, and were rescued by the police. According to witness Norman Sevara, age 41, the duck Boat hit the barge “It hit pretty hard and pulled the boat under. It went straight under.” Eight of the passengers were taken to the hospital for treatment. The striking barge named “The Resource” was owned by K-Sea Transportation and was being pushed by a tug on its port side. The duck boat is operated by “Ride The Ducks” which began operating in Philadelphia in 2003 and operates 15 duck boats in the city and operates about 90 vessels in several cities including Atlanta, Baltimore, Memphis, and Branson, Missouri. “Ride the Ducks” is owned by the Herschend Family Entertainment Company which is located near Atlanta and operates Camden’s Adventure Aquarium, The Dollywood Theme Park, as well as many other water adventure parks. In a 1999 accident another amphibious tour boat The Miss Majestic sank and killed 13 passengers in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the victims of this tragic and seemingly preventable accident. We wish all the victims the best for a speedy and complete recovery and will keep them in our prayers.

Based upon a news report, it appears that the operator of the barge and tug could be at fault and if it is determined that they caused this accident, they could be held liable for injuries and damages caused to the victims. All of the victims and their families would be well advised to consult with an experienced Pennsylvania personal injury and Pennsylvania boating and watercraft accident attorney who could advise them about their legal rights and options. In such cases, accident victims can seek compensation to cover medical expenses, lost wages, costs of hospitalization and other related damages. For a free no obligation consultation, please contact one of our experienced attorneys at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com. Our record of success speaks for itself.

April 8, 2010

Rape Of 7-Year Old At Apartment Building Spotlights Inadequate Security Issues

A 7-year girl was gang raped at a crime-ridden apartment building in Trenton, New Jersey after her stepsister sold her to a group of men at a party according to news sources. The incident occurred at Rowan Towers owned by Interstate Realty and Management Company. According to news sources, there have been many lapses of security at this apartment building despite complaints by tenants requesting cameras and a lot of other things to improve their security and safety concerns. A spokesperson for the owner stated that they lack the expertise to handle security on their own and will hire an outside consultant. The apartment complex sits on a stretch of West State Street near downtown Trenton surrounded by blocks of abandoned and boarded up homes, yet it is fronted by a well manicured lawn and features a colorful playground and basketball courts. Safety and privacy of tenants and residents should be and must be a top priority for owners and operators of apartment homes. As this case reveals, many times this is simply not the case. Many times accidents such as this occur at apartment complexes due to poor lighting, inadequate security, and lack of easily affordable technology and security devices such as closed circuit cameras. Because of such inadequate security, many unsuspecting guests or tenants are robbed, shot, killed, raped, stabbed, or assaulted.

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April 7, 2010

My Pennsylvania Personal Injury Attorney Reinforced the Value of Hope

The dictionary defines hope as the belief in a positive outcome relating to the events and circumstances in one's life. Hope implies a certain amount of despair: wanting, wishing, suffering or perseverance, believing that a better or positive outcome is possible even when there is some evidence leading to the contrary.

The term false hope refers to hope highly based on fantasy or an extremely unlikely outcome.

At the law firm of Reiff and Bily, our lawyers understand and respect the value of hope. It is our job to communicate the plaintiffs dreams and hopes to the insurance companies and ultimately to the juries who hear our cases. It is our job to prove what the plaintiff was capable of doing prior to an incident and identify the compensation necessary for the plaintiff to recognize the fulfillment of his dreams and goals. The lawyers of Reiff and Bily are not afraid to ask the insurance companies or juries to fully compensate plaintiffs for the loss of their dreams and hopes.

Hope was personified in Greek mythology as Elpis. When Pandora opened Pandora's box, she let out all of the evils except one known as hope.

In law, damages refer to the money awarded to a claimant, also known as a plaintiff, following a successful claim in a civil action. Damages in personal injury or tort affairs are generally awarded to place the plaintiff in a position that he or she would have been in had the tort or action not have taken place. Compensatory damages compensate the plaintiff for pain and suffering and loss of amenities and losses of hope. Examples of this include physical or emotional pain and suffering, loss of companionship, loss of consortium, disfigurement, loss of reputation, loss or impairment of mental or physical capacity, loss of life's pleasures, frustration, humiliation, degradation, and a non inclusive list of other factors. This is not easily quantifiable and depends on the individual circumstances. We refer to it as, what is the value of hope? What is the value of the loss of a plaintiff’s dreams and hopes that he had prior to the incident? We seek to recover full compensatory damages generally to place the plaintiff in a position in which he would have been had the offense or tort not taken place.

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March 4, 2010

The United States Congress Committee On Oversight And Government Reform Reveals Evidence That Toyota Deliberately Withheld Relevant Electronic Records That It Was Legally Required to Produce

In a letter from the United States Congress Committee on Oversight and Government Reform sent to Mr. Yoshimi Inaba as part of their investigation into Toyota’s handling of vehicle recalls arising from incidents of sudden acceleration, it was revealed that Toyota deliberately withheld relevant electronic records that it was legally required to produce in rollover litigation. Many of these documents concerned rollover cases where the plaintiff was injured or killed. The letter also goes on to note that Mr. Dimitrious Biller, who is managing counsel of the product liability group of Toyota Motor Sales and in a very senior position in which he lead the defense of some of the largest tort cases against Toyota, particularly rollover cases involving seriously injured victims, did not produce all of the requested documents during the litigation process. Biller was concerned with Toyota’s failure to produce electronic documents in litigation. The documents also indicate that Mr. Biller was concerned that Toyota’s interactions with NHTSA would be discovered. Finally the Biller documents shined light on Toyota’s handling of the sudden, unintended acceleration problem.

In summary, the Biller documents and Toyota documents indicate a systematic disregard for the law and a routine violation of court discovery orders in litigation. People injured in crashes involving Toyota vehicles may have been injured a second time when Toyota failed to produce relevant evidence to the court. This also raises very serious questions as to whether Toyota has withheld substantial relevant information from NHTSA.

As experienced product liability lawyers, we have been well aware of Toyota's posturing for many years and their refusal to play fair in the litigation process. We are currently investigating a number of Toyota airbag and sudden acceleration claims.

February 15, 2010

Parasailing Accident Kills A Philadelphia Native While Vacationing In Mexico

According to newspaper reports, a Philadelphia resident, Joseph Job (Sajan), died in Mexico while paragliding in the ocean along with his friends. Our hearts and prayers go out to the family of Mr. Job and his wife Sajina and three children Tanisha, Natasha, and Trishelle.

Reports indicated that Mr. Job and his family were on a Carnival Cruise vacation in Cozumel, Mexico when the accident happened. On September 14, 2009 I wrote an article entitled ”Is Parasailing Safe” as I witnessed a catastrophic parasailing accident with the same consequences over 30 years ago when I was on vacation with my family in Jamaica. Since that time, I have been contacted by families of others who have suffered catastrophic consequences as a result of parasailing or amusement accidents. This summer there were a number of parasailing accidents resulting in fatalities and catastrophic accidents. Although parasailing is an extraordinarily popular vacation adventure, they often operate in an unregulated environment and many times people with limited knowledge but for how to make a buck are the operators.

As an avid traveler, I have been to Mexico many times and have seen parasailing operations operated by children who appear to be no older than 12 years old and I have seen people that are parasailing land in the middle of crowds and on buildings. The only thing that the operator is interested in are American greenbacks.

Parasailing accidents call for more regulation of parasailing noting that many operators cut corners on safety where innocent customers are left in the dark about whether the ride is safe or not. Parasailing injuries, just as any other amusement, carnival, or water sport injury often involves a combination of many theories of law requiring legal and technical expertise. There is most likely a combination of product liability, and negligence and premises liability law to be explored and prosecution against the wrongdoer.

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February 12, 2010

Auto Industry Getting Called To The Carpet - Consumer Outrage Growing

Since 1979, I have successfully represented injured consumers against major automobile manufacturers on behalf of clients who sustained catastrophic injuries or fatalities as a result of defectively designed cars. Unbelievably, there is not a single government group that has responsibility for assuring the public that cars and trucks are safe similar to the situation as it exists with the Food and Drug Administration or the FAA who extensively test products before they hit the market.

In the last month, Toyota has recalled in excess of 8.5 million cars and evidence reveals that Toyota was well aware of numerous defects in these vehicles for many years as was the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. As a matter of fact, State Farm Insurance Company noted that it warned the federal government about a disturbing trend of vehicle caused accidents involving Toyota Motor Corporation as far back as 2007. The insurer stated that it contacted the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in late 2007 and had been in touch with a regulator an unspecified number of times since then.

Last summer a former Toyota lawyer alleged that Toyota had concealed evidence from courts and from the government in a systematic and ruthless fashion. Toyota’s marketing experts were quite adept at portraying an image of integrity and social conscious with the Prius. Unfortunately, actions speak louder than words and perhaps once and for all the concerted efforts of trial lawyers and the outrage of consumers will be enough to generate support for true and realistic safety regulation in the automobile industry.

This experienced automobile defect lawyer who has fought for clients who have sustained catastrophic injuries or fatalities for many years would like to see a system where vehicles have to pass regular safety tests prior to entering the marketplace and have their designs examined by government regulators with teeth similar to the FDA prior to entry to the marketplace. The car is no different than a new drug being introduced to market for the safety of precious lives.

November 3, 2009

7-Year Old Child Killed During Halloween Hay Ride

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of 7-year old Emily Midgley who was killed at 7:00 p.m. on Halloween when she was run over while exiting a Halloween hay ride. Unfortunately the experienced defective trailer and Halloween hay ride injury lawyers of Reiff and Bily are all too familiar with these types of tragic incidents.

Recently we were litigating a Halloween hay ride trailer accident case involving a young boy and his mother who were run over during a holiday hay ride. The insurance company representing the hay ride operator attempted to desecrate the mother of our client who was run over, as well as the innocent child himself, despite the fact that the operator of the hay ride was not licensed nor took proper safety precautions.

Unfortunately, many operators view Halloween hay rides as a way to make a quick buck and do not pay proper attention to safety and regulations concerning the riders. The family of Emily Midgley would be well advised to seek the services of an experienced amusement park attorney and defective hay ride attorney to investigate this claim and insure that they recover proper compensation for this tragic loss.

If you or a loved one has been injured as a result of a hay ride accident, please contact one of our experienced hayride injury and defective trailer lawyers for a free consultation at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

September 1, 2009

Prominent Philadelphia Hotel Is the Scene Of Violent Assault and Robbery Of Tourists

According to news sources, Philadelphia police made an arrest in the violent robbery of two tourist at the Philadelphia Marriott located at 12th and Market Streets. According to the news sources, police claimed that Anthony Thomas, 28, of West Philadelphia followed a 52-year old female guest from the elevator to her room shortly before 4:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 30th. Investigators claim that a knife was put to the throat of the hotel guest and she was robbed. Lt. Frank Vanore of the Philadelphia police stated “He drew knife, he cut the female across the mouth and face and proceeded to demand money from her and threatened to kill her during the course of the incident”. Police also reported that on August 6th, Mr. Thomas forced his way into the room of a Marriott guest from Sacramento, California and robbed her at knife point. Police suspect that the assailant may be involved in a number of other recent robberies in center city Philadelphia.

Inadequate security lawyer, Jeffrey Reiff, of the Philadelphia inadequate security and premises liability law firm of Reiff and Bily has been successfully representing the rights of negligent security cases on behalf of victims of physical assaults or robberies since 1979. The safety and privacy of hotel and motel guests should be the top priority for owners and operators of hotels. However, many times we find this is simply not the case. Because of inadequate security at hotels and motels many unsuspecting guests are robbed, shot, killed, raped, stabbed or assaulted in parking lots, corridors, hallways, rooms or other common areas. Many times there is a breakdown in the property owners security system which cannot only encourage criminal activity but can also result in the property owner’s liability to the crime victim for negligence. First and foremost, our thoughts go out the victims and their families, we hope that these fine and unsuspecting individuals recover quickly and completely from their injuries.

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August 6, 2009

Yamaha Rhino Rollovers Continue to Kill Many Innocent Riders

According to a report filed by The Consumer Product Safety Commission, more than 440 wrongful death and personal injury lawsuits are pending against Yamaha. They further report that Yamaha has settled many other cases. Most of the Yamaha Rhino rollover stem from rollovers in which drivers or passengers were flung through the open door space to the ground and smashed by an 11,000 pound vehicle.

On March 31, 2009. under pressure from The Consumer Products Safety Commission, Yamaha announced a “free repair program” to improve the Rhino’s handling and stability - seemingly a recall in everything but name. Reports revealed that Yamaha began investigating the use of leg protection on the Rhino by early 2006 but did not offer the half doors until August 2007 and a retrofit offer covered 2004 to 2007 Rhinos. Doors are now standard on the 2008 model. In deposition testimony, senior Yamaha engineers stated that they had considered using doors in the first place - then gave a surprising explanation for deciding not to. Doors would create such a feeling of safety, they said, that riders might not wear helmets or seat belts. In a deposition in May 2008, Takanori Suzuki, formerly a project leader for the Rhino, stated even now the only reason to include doors is that “occupants are intentionally sticking their legs out in situations involving aggressive driving and abrupt maneuvers”.

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June 18, 2009

Zicam Nasal Spray Warning

On June 16, 2009, the Food and Drug Administration told the manufacturers of one of the country’s most popular cold medications, Zicam, to stop selling its nasal spray and swabs. In the last 10 years, approximately 130 consumers have filed complaints stating that they permanently lost their sense of smell after using Zicam.

The manufacturers of Zicam, Matrixx Initiatives, has suspended shipments of the products and they claim that the warning is not supported by scientific evidence and is asking the FDA for review. According to the New York Times, the company paid $12 million dollars to settle 340 lawsuits from Zicam users who claim that their product destroyed their sense of smell in 2006 and hundreds more lawsuits have been filed.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the company will be required to receive FDA approval if it wants to market the products in the future. The L.A. Times also reported that the company may have received 800 reports “of anosmia... associated with the use of the products from doctors and consumers, but has failed to report such reports to the FDA.

If you or a loved one has been using Zicam and have experienced any medical problems or have lost your sense of smell, you would be well advised to seek the services of an experienced medical malpractice or products liability lawyer to evaluate your condition and explore your legal options. Reiff and Bily are experienced product liability lawyers who are committed to promoting consumer safety. For a free no obligation consultation, contact us toll free at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

June 12, 2009

Protect The Ones You Love From Drowning

It is an unfortunate fact that as the summer season comes, so do water and pool-related injuries and deaths. Approximately 10 water-related deaths per day are related to drowning. Additionally, 700 people die each year in boating-related accidents. According to the CDC more than 1 in 4 fatal drowning victims are children aged 14 and younger. For every child who drowns, another 4 receive emergency treatment for non-fatal submersion and brain injury. Non-fatal drownings often cause brain damage resulting in long-term disabilities including memory problems, learning disabilities and a permanent loss of basic functioning. The CDC determined that the major risk factors for swimming pool accidents and/or drowning are lack of barriers and supervision. Almost all young children who drown in pools were last since in the home, had been out of sight less than 5 minutes and were in the care of one or both parents at the time. All pools should have pool fencing which can help prevent children from getting access to the pool area without care giver awareness. With adult or adolescent deaths there is generally a ratio of alcohol use with a drowning or pool injury. Alcohol influences balance, coordination and judgment and its effects are often heightened by sun exposure and heat.

The experienced Philadelphia swimming pool accident and injury lawyers of Reiff and Bily recommend that you take the following steps to help prevent pool or water related drowning or injuries.

1. Designate a responsible adult to watch young children while swimming or playing in or around water. Adults should not be involved in any other distracting activity such as reading, playing cards, talking on the phone or mowing the lawn while supervising children.

2. Always swim with a buddy.

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June 11, 2009

Hotel Crime and Security Concerns An Increasing Issue In Recession

Last month, two women were raped and assaulted in a prominent Boston hotel and additionally, two women were tied up in another New England hotel by an assailant dubbed “The Craiglist Killer”. A USA Today story reported an experienced hotel manager of a Northbrook Illinois hotel was followed into a room by a man and was tied up and choked.
With the downturn in the economy and the recession also comes increased security concerns at a hotel. A greater likelihood of more criminal activity. According to a story published in USA Today, Philip Farina, CEO of Enterprising Securities, a San Antonio company that links security programs for hotels, notes “We are absolutely seeing an increase in crimes at hotels”. Farina also notes that hard economic times are especially driving up incidents of theft including the amount perpetrated by hotel staff. Not so surprisingly, as hotels attempt to stay profitable they are cutting back on necessary security.

The experienced Philadelphia hotel security and inadequate security law firm of Reiff and Bily has been handling hotel assault cases and premise liability assault cases involving hotels since 1979. We believe and the law recognizes that the safety and privacy of hotel/motel resort and cruise ship guests should be the top priority for all owners and operators of the hospitality industry; however, this is often not the case.

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June 8, 2009

Roller Coaster Killing Illustrates Amusement Park Dangers

According to news sources, a two year old boy was struck and killed by a roller coaster as he slipped away from his parents and ran onto the tracks in an amusement park in London. An official affiliated with the amusement park stated “There would have been a barrier surrounding the roller coaster but he must have found a way around it.” I have written on a number of occasions that amusement parks and carnivals are a child’s playground and a favorite for families but an often unknowingly dangerous form of entertainment for families and young people. I personally have experienced and witnessed a few catastrophic amusement park accidents and had a close call with my own family when two people were killed as a result of an amusement malfunction in Ocean City, Maryland once again on a kiddie roller coaster.

Amusement parks and carnivals operate under a serious loophole in the Consumer Product Safety Act of 1981 prohibiting the CPSC from regulating the safety of rides fixed to a specific site. Unfortunately, regulation and inspection of “fixed site” amusement rides are left up to state or local municipalities and as a result every site varies from good to none and there is no official source who keeps an official record of amusement park accidents.

Accident data for most amusement parks is a well guarded secret and we only hear about the catastrophic incidences. The amusement park industry is highly unregulated and there is not a uniform system for reporting injuries, creating a serious danger when amusement parks police their own accidents. Many times, innocent customers and consumers are left in the dark about which amusement park is safe to visit and which rides are safe for their families, creating real dangers for families and their precious children. Unfortunately with the downturn of the economy, many parks have cut corners on safety and no longer staff the load and unload positions of rides and leave maintenance and supervision many times to high school and college students working on a temporary basis who are entrusted to operate these rides with minimal training. Many times amusement park personnel, including operators, are not paying attention to the precious cargo on the ride.

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June 5, 2009

Two Sexual Assaults in One Month At Boston Hotels Raises Many Issues Of Concern

In April a woman was raped and beaten by a stranger in a parking garage of a well known Boston hotel. According to news sources, the Boston police department asked the Radisson Hotel, who owns the garage, to remain quiet about the attack stating that any publicity could “compromise their chance to catch the individuals” according to a hotel spokesman. Sources also revealed that the police arrested a suspect in the rape but only 11 days later after a second victim was attacked in a similarly violent fashion in the same garage. A controversy has now arisen regarding how much information should be released to the public about sexual assaults.

The same news article revealed that police departments across the country did not have uniform guidelines about releasing warnings to the public about a sexual predator. The Philadelphia police claim that they issue electronic bulletins to media outlets every time a woman reports being raped by someone she didn’t know. Lt. Frank Vanore, a spokesman for the Philadelphia police department, is quoted as saying “We feel it is important to notify the public because any one of these could be someone that is a predator”. According to news sources in the Boston case, the first attack occurred on April 19th in the garage at the Radisson Hotel Boston which is located downtown. At approximately 5:30 in the morning, a woman was on the 5th floor in the garage heading to work when a man asked her for directions. The police then say he attacked her and when she started to scream, police said he threatened to throw her to the street below. The attacker raped the woman repeatedly and then ran when he became aware of passerby. On April 30th, a woman identified her attacker from a photo but police could not locate him. At 3:00 a.m. the next morning, less than 12 hours after the alleged rapist was identified, police say he attacked again at the same location at the same garage but this time on the 2nd floor and the second woman claimed that the attacker dragged her by her hair, beat her and raped her. The suspect was arrested later that day.

Incidents like this are not isolated incidents and in fact, are more common than the general public is aware of. Another interesting issue is presented by this case, namely that hotel owners and hotel managers must take all reasonable and necessary steps to make sure that injuries, deaths and criminal activity does not occur to patrons, visitors or workers while on their property. Hotels have a general duty to reasonably protect guests from harm caused by other guests or non-guests and an affirmative duty to make the premises reasonably safe for their guests. An accident or criminal action that takes place on a hotel premises may be grounds for a hotel liability claim or lawsuit. In this instance, the hotel had prior notice of criminal activity on the premises. Hotels have a general obligation to protect their business invitee from “hidden dangers”. This may include the following: installing proper lighting in hallways, stairwells, parking lots and other dark areas and making sure that proper security is enforced when there is notice of criminal activity.

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June 4, 2009

The Amount of Medical Malpractice Claims Filed In Pennsylvania And Philadelphia Drops Noticeably - Philadelphia Medical Malpractice Lawyer Weighs In

According to a report released by the administrative office of Pennsylvania court system, there was a 54% decrease in filing medical malpractice claims in Philadelphia in 2008. The abrupt decline in medical malpractice cases throughout Pennsylvania first occurred in 2003 when the Pennsylvania Supreme Court adopted procedural changes to reduce malpractice cases. Now all medical malpractice cases must be filed in the county where medical treatment occurred and must be certified by a medical expert. An attorney must obtain a certificate of merit from a medical professional to establish that the case fell below medical standards before bringing a lawsuit to court.

The experienced Philadelphia medical malpractice lawyers at Reiff and Bily still maintain that egregious medical malpractice cases can still be tried or settled with much success. An experienced medical malpractice attorney should determine at the outset whether or not liability is clear and damages are serious enough to warrant successful prosecution. Surprisingly, although the medical community has argued about excessive insurance rates, and despite a decline in the number of cases filed, Pennsylvania still remains one of the most costly states in the country to secure medical malpractice insurance for a physician. Doctors have long protested that high premiums for medical malpractice insurance will reduce the amount of business and limit plaintiff’s access to care. This lawyer is of the opinion that much of the medical malpractice “crisis” was based on selective misinformation and scare tactics utilized by the insurance industry who still continue to profit when physicians pay significant premiums unrelated to the realities of the situation.

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June 3, 2009

‘Tis The Season For Amusement Park Accidents - Amusement Zoo Train Derails With 22 People Injured One Critically

According to news sources, a small amusement type train carrying visitors to the Louisville Zoo fell off the tracks Monday June 1, 2009 sending 22 people to local hospitals, including one child who was critically injured. According to news sources, a small engine was pulling a train that circled the Louisville Zoo when three cars and the engine fell off the rails near the gorilla exhibit. The ages of the injured passengers were from 2 months old to senior citizens. Obviously, amusement parks and zoos are a great place for families and kids to unwind and be entertained. As the unfortunate accident at the Louisville Zoo indicates, even the most innocent looking amusement rides can be dangerous and lead to catastrophic injury and fatalities if they are not operated or maintained in a proper fashion.

One likes to assume that every amusement ride or zoo ride is safe. However, in actuality this is often far from the case. The experienced amusement park injury and accident lawyers at Reiff and Bily find that in most cases where injuries or fatalities occur on an amusement ride there is generally improper maintenance or inadequate supervision. The victims who were injured by this derailment at the Louisville Zoo may have claims not only against the operators of the ride who may have failed to properly maintain or supervise the ride but also potentially against the manufacturer of the ride for making an allegedly defective and dangerous product. The injured victims would be well advised to retain the services of a reputable amusement park accident attorney who has experience dealing with amusement park and product liability injury cases.

If you or a loved one has been injured as the result of an amusement park accident, please contact one of our experienced amusement park accident attorneys at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

June 1, 2009

Microscopic Cracks In Motorcycle Tires - A Hidden But Well Known Cause Of Tire Failure Often Resulting in Catastrophic Injuries

The experienced Philadelphia motorcycle accident attorneys of Reiff and Bily call your attention to a fact that all too often goes unnoticed by all too many motorcycle riders. Motorcycle tires, like any other tire, deteriorates over time. Environmental factors such as heat, ultraviolet light, oxygen and other factors cause tires to harden as they get older. Many times cracks develop. Older and harder tires also may not conform to the road as well as a newer, softer tire and this affects the traction or grip creating a dangerous situation particularly on slick or wet highways.

A condition known as dry rot in the tires generally occurs with older tires and bikes that have been left outdoors in the elements and not used or covered during extended periods of storage. Though motorcycle tires are relatively expensive, it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that they are the most critically important element to safety on a motorcycle. As motorcycle season gets into full swing, it is important to have your tires examined or inspected by a qualified mechanic or expert. It is also important to perform your own self inspection regarding the tread. If your tread is less than one milimeter deep, the tires should be replaced. If your tire is bald or has minimal tread, there is a good chance that trouble lies ahead when you are operating on a slick highway or executing a turn or accident avoidance maneuver. It is also important that the tires of your motorcycle be properly inflated and not overloaded as it increases the risk of tire failure which most likely will result in serious and catastrophic personal injury or fatality, not to mention property damage. Many times a tire failure is noticeable to the rider of the motorcycle by a vibration, bump or irregular wear. If you find yourself driving on a motorcycle that has a blowout or sudden tire failure, experts recommend that you slowly decrease the amount of throttle, hold the handlebars firm and steer to maintain your lane position. Gently apply your brakes and pull over to a spot where you can safely stop the motorcycle. It is always important to follow the tire manufacturer and motorcycle manufacturer’s recommended air pressure and maintenance and inspection schedule for both motorcycle tires. As an experienced motorcycle rider, I check my pressure before every motorcycle ride.

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May 28, 2009

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court Renders Important Decision Upholding Denial Of Coverage For Late Notice

The Philadelphia personal injury and insurance claim lawyers at Reiff and Bily call your attention to a recent ruling by the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania in Ace American Insurance Company v. Underwriters at Lloyds and Companies which upheld the importance of enforcing the plain and clear meaning of insurance contract language.

In the case at hand, Ace purchased a claims made and reported policy with Lloyds and the terms specifically stated that Ace must file a report or it must report a claim as soon as practicable and in no event no later than 90 days after the expiration date of the policy. The insurance company denied payment claiming that Ace failed to timely comply with the errors and omissions policy’s specific notice of claim requirements. Ace argued that the insurance company could not be denied a claim based upon late notice unless it could show harm or prejudice.

Claims made insurance policies provide an insurer a clear and certain cutoff date for coverage. In return, the insured typically pays a lower premium. Based on actual data, a claims made policy can be as much as 32% cheaper than an occurrence policy premium according to public records.

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May 27, 2009

Amusement Park and Water Park Safety Should Be A Top Priority

In 2008, over 300,000,000 people visited United States Amusement Parks and Water Slide Parks and it is estimated that they enjoyed over 1.8 billion rides. An informal fixed site amusement ride injury survey estimated that there were 1,309 ride-related injuries in 2007 with only 35 of these injuries reported as serious. While the amusement park and attraction industry is in the business of creating fun, unfortunately the accuracy of reporting ride injury statistics is debatable. The Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that over 5,000 serious accidents occur at fixed amusement park facilities. It is important to note that the ability to gather accurate information regarding amusement park injuries is seriously hampered by a loophole in the Consumer Product Safety Act of 1981 known as the “roller coaster loophole”. This loophole prohibits the CPSC from regulating the safety of rides that are fixed to a specific site. Although multiple attempts have been made to introduce legislation regarding amusement park safety on amusement park rides, they have failed to become law. The majority of regulation and inspection of amusement rides is left up to state or local municipalities and therefore, the reality of this situation is that the oversight varies from good to none. Due to the seriousness of the lack of regulation and lack of legislation with “teeth”, many theme parks unfortunately present hidden dangers to unsuspecting visitors.

At the experienced Philadelphia personal injury amusement park accident law firm of Reiff and Bily, we understand that families and children enjoy visiting amusement parks and hope that each one of the owners and operators of these amusement parks takes all steps necessary to protect their guests from any undue risk or negligence to make sure that their visit is safe. When Injuries happen at amusement parks many conflicts and complexities of law arise requiring experience and technical expertise. There is most likely a combination of common negligence, product liability, and premise liability law to be explored and prosecuted against the wrongdoer by an experienced amusement park accident lawyer.

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May 19, 2009

Doctors Make Mistakes Increasingly Resulting In Unhappy Reality For Patients

On Monday, May 3, 2009 the Atlanta Journal Constitution featured an article noting that medical mistakes create unhappy realities. In the article, the following mistakes were highlighted: A surgical team at Northside Hospital was supposed to remove one of the patient’s breasts; however, performed a double mastectomy because of a mistake. At an Atlanta medical center, a surgeon drilled on the wrong side of a patient’s head before discovering the error. It also noted that at several Georgia Hospital’s doctors circumcised the wrong baby and doctors mistakenly operated on the wrong hand, knee, hip, leg and other body parts.

At the Philadelphia medical malpractice law firm of Reiff and Bily, we have noted that despite protocols and initiatives by a number of medical groups, we receive many calls to investigate and prosecute claims for wrong site surgeries, surgical sponges left inside individuals, as well as removal of body parts that were not intended to be removed. We have seen many cases where the doctor simply admits to the patient that he made an error but in many cases we see medical “cover-ups”. How often these incidences occur in hospitals in Pennsylvania and hospitals throughout the country is a well kept secret.

Last year there were 76 reports of wrong site incidences filed with statewide watchdogs in Pennsylvania. To the credit of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and as a result of the efforts of trial lawyers, an organization was formed focusing, collecting, analyzing and informing the public about patient safety issues. They suggested that patients take an active role to prevent medical errors and some tips to protect yourself are as follows:

1. Talk with doctors - Make sure you, your doctor and surgeon agree on what is to be done.

2. Read paperwork - When signing consent forms and working with schedulers make sure that they all have the correct information about the surgery, including which side is to be operated on.

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May 15, 2009

Are You Being Forced Into Arbitration? - Denying Access To Your Right To A Jury Trial

The experienced Philadelphia personal injury lawyers at the law firm of Reiff and Bily note that more and more individuals are signing away their right to sue in a court of law if something goes wrong. When entering into any contract with lenders, credit card companies, cell phone providers, and cable providers there is a good chance that contract requires you to sign away your right to sue if there is a problem. Unfortunately, many consumers are being forced into mandatory arbitration and many critics claim that arbitration favors the large corporation and not the individual. Henceforth, the likelihood of a positive outcome can be less than if you pursue litigation through the court systems.

Bills have been introduced in the House and Senate ending mandatory arbitration clauses. However, they are strongly opposed by some of the most powerful industries in the country. Unfortunately, the reality of mandatory arbitration clauses is that the company gets to pick an arbitrator who is often a retired judge or seasoned individual who have a selfish incentive to make the company hiring them happy if they want future employment and more dollars in their pocket.

Recently one of the experienced personal injury lawyers of Reiff and Bily had an experience with a client where he went into a mediation and paid a considerable amount of money to the mediator only to find that the mediator was so biased against our client that we walked out of the mediation shortly after the start and filed an action seeking redress in the courts. Many arbitrators and even the American Arbitration Association (the leading arbitration provider) states that procedures are in place “that are fair and mutual and which give all parties to the dispute an equal voice in the selection of an arbitrator”. A recent article published in the LA Times blasting forced arbitration quoted Geoff Lysaught, Director of Searle Civil Justice Institute at Northwestern University of Law, stating that researchers had found evidence that companies involved in repeated arbitrations tend to receive more favorable outcomes than infrequent participants. As noted above, this may be due to the fact that repeat players represent more revenue for arbitrators. Any “plain fool” can determine that what is supposed to be an unbiased and fair forum for a hearing may not necessarily be that way.

Continue reading "Are You Being Forced Into Arbitration? - Denying Access To Your Right To A Jury Trial" »

May 13, 2009

Ride of Silence Calls Attention to Cycling Safety And Awareness

Philadelphia bicycle accident lawyers at Reiff and Bily want to remind all of our clients and readers that the Central Bucks Bicycle Club invites them to participate in the Ride of Silence Bike Rally starting at 6:30 p.m. on May 20, 2009 at Central Bucks West High School, 375 West Court Street, Doylestown, PA. This is a worldwide event determined to not only raise awareness of bicycle safety but also to demonstrate a public display of mourning in funeral procession style for the cyclists who have been killed in collisions with motor vehicles. Last year, The Ride of Silence events were held in more than 300 locations throughout the United States and 18 countries.

Bicycle ridership is on the upswing in the United States and particularly in Philadelphia and so are the serious injuries and fatalities. Each year fatalities result from bike rides due to the fact that many motorists are simply not paying attention and more importantly, many motorists do not possess adequate insurance to protect the rider in the event of a catastrophic injury. Most bike accidents are severe if not fatal.

The experienced bicycle accident law firm of Reiff and Bily has had extensive experience working with bicycle accident cases and assist injured bikers in assessing and protecting their legal rights. We strongly urge all of our bicyclists, readers and clients to participate in this no fee event on May 20, 2009 which will be a silent slow pace 6 mile ride through the Borough of Doylestown escorted by the Doylestown Police Department.

For more information on this event, please contact the Central Bucks County Bicycle Club or the experienced Philadelphia bicycle accident law firm of Reiff and Bily at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

May 12, 2009

Motorcycle Drivers Beware Of How Awful People Drive Everyday

In Philadelphia, spring is upon us and so is the increase of motorcycle ridership on our streets and highways. Like clockwork every spring, the experienced Philadelphia motorcycle accident law firm of Reiff and Bily receives phone calls from motorcyclists who are seriously injured and unfortunately, from the families of some individuals who were killed as a result of a motorcycle accident.

Statistics reveal that motorcyclists are about 16 times more likely than those in passenger vehicles to die in a motor vehicle crash and about 3 to 4 times as likely to be injured. This morning I had the occasion to meet with a client who was driving his motorcycle rightfully down a street in Philadelphia when another vehicle negligently ran a stop sign and crashed into him causing a catastrophic injury. Yesterday, I was made aware of another situation involving the death of a motorcyclist who had only been on a motorcycle a few times.

Many factors contribute to motorcycle crashes and one of the most common factors can be operator inexperience and the operator’s failure to appreciate the limitations of the bike. Statistics reveal that over 1/3 of multi-vehicle motorcycle crashes result from another motorist turning into the path of the motorcycle. Recently, Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell signed a bill repealing the state’s motorcycle helmet law. Senate Bill 259 repeals a helmet law for riders over age 21 with two years of riding experience or a rider education course while riders under age 21 are still required to wear a motorcycle helmet. Motorcycle helmet laws are highly political and hot topics of debate throughout the United States and Pennsylvania emergency physicians and hospitals have asked the State Legislature to reenact the state’s mandatory motorcycle helmet law.

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May 11, 2009

Philadelphia Elder Abuse And Nursing Home Abuse Lawyer Jeffrey Reiff Salutes Introduction Of Critically Needed Patient Safety Legislation

Nursing home abuse and elder abuse is simply inexcusable. The Philadelphia nursing home abuse law firm of Reiff and Bily recognizes that nursing home and assisted living residents are some of the most vulnerable and defenseless victims of personal injuries.

On May 4, 2009 Pennsylvania Congressman Joe Sestak announced the introduction of the Patient Safety and Abuse Prevention Act which would prevent those with criminal histories from working in long-term care settings by creating a comprehensive nationwide system of background checks. The legislation would expand a highly successful three year pilot program which would prevent more than 7,000 applicants with a history of substantiated abuse or a violent criminal record from working with and preying upon elders and individuals with disabilities in long term care settings. The Bill calls for states to establish coordinated systems that include checks against abuse and neglect registries and a State Police check which facilities can utilize on a voluntary basis. The measure also adds a Federal component to the background process by screening applicants against the FBI’s nation database of criminal history records. Apparently, thousands of individuals with a history of substantiated abuse or criminal record are hired every year to work closely with exposed and defenseless seniors within our nation’s nursing homes and other long term care facilities.

Statistics indicate that currently over 91% of all nursing homes and assisted living facilities are improperly staffed and the situation continues to worsen with the devastation of the economy. Most abuse cases are not reported and statistics reveal that the source of abuse often comes from improperly screened care givers. We anticipate and trust that Congressman Sestak’s proposed legislation will go to great lengths to reduce this alarming statistic and increased frequency of nursing home neglect.

At the Philadelphia nursing home abuse law firm of Reiff and Bily, we have successfully handled thousands of cases since 1979 recovering in excess of $150,000,000 for our clients. We believe that nursing homes and assisted living facilities must be held accountable for the poor treatment of our loved ones in their golden years. We have considerable personal experience with these matters and will work with you and our experienced team of experts and investigators to represent your rights. Call today for a free consultation with a nursing home or elder abuse and neglect lawyer to evaluate your nursing home negligence case at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

May 8, 2009

Bicycle Season Is In Full Swing - Make Sure You Wear A Helmet

As a Philadelphia bicycle accident attorney and an active bicyclist for the last 45 years, I have been the victim of quite a few bike accidents and have represented many individuals who have been catastrophically injured as the result of a bicycle accident. Every year, injuries and fatalities from bike rides increase due to the fact that many motorists are not paying attention.

For many years when I rode my bike I never wore a helmet, enjoying the freedom. However, every year approximately 135 children die from bicycle-related injuries and more than 267,000 non-fatal bicycle accidents occur. It is a well known statistic that helmets can reduce the risk of head trauma and severe brain injury by 88%. However, studies indicate that only 15 to 25% of children 14 and under wear a bicycle helmet. Many states and municipalities are now requiring all bicycle riders to wear helmets at all times when riding a bicycle.

When selecting a helmet, one should purchase one that meets standards set by the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission. I suggest purchasing a helmet from a store specializing in bikes who understand that safety comes first. Of course, a helmet is of no great value unless it is properly fitted and put on correctly. Straps must always be buckled and the helmet should be positioned correctly on the head. For more information about bicycle safety, call 937-641-3385 or visit www.usa.safekids.org.

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May 7, 2009

Philadelphia Product Liability Attorneys Of Reiff and Bily Call Awareness To Recall of 96,000 Defective Cribs

Philadelphia product liability lawyers of Reiff and Bily inform our clients and readers that the U. S. Consumer Product Safety Commission reported on May 5, 2009 that Jardine Enterprises is recalling cribs. The cribs are being recalled due to a potential strangulation hazard. U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission provided “The wooden slats can break, creating a gap, which can pose an entrapment and strangulation hazard to infants and toddlers”.

This is the third recall that Jardine Enterprises has announced for its wooden cribs. The second recall came early this year in January of 2009 in which three potential models of the crib were cited as being a child safety hazard due the potential for strangulation. The U.S. Consumer and Product Safety Commission has requested that consumers stop using the cribs immediately and contact Jardine Enterprises to obtain instructions on how to receive full credit towards the purchase of a new crib.

The Philadelphia product liability law firm of Reiff and Bily has been representing clients in Pennsylvania who were harmed by defective products. Consumers have the right to expect that the products they purchase are safe for use or consumption. Faulty or dangerous products such as those recalled can cause serious injuries or kill innocent victims.

If you or a loved one was injured by a defective product, Reiff and Bily can investigate what caused your injuries and which parties were responsible under Pennsylvania law. Call the experienced product liability lawyers at Reiff and Bily at 1-800-421-9595 or contact us online at www.reiffandbily.com to schedule a free consultation with one of our experienced defective product lawyers.

May 5, 2009

Hydroxycut Users Beware

As many of you may or may not be aware, on May 1, 2009 the Food and Drug Administration advised people to immediately stop using the dietary supplement Hydroxycut which is linked to serious liver injuries and death. In its warning, the FDA identified 23 reports of Hydroxycut causing liver damage. The maker of Hydroxycut has also agreed to recall all Hydroxycut products. FDA recall notice.

Hydroxycut products are manufactured by Iovate Health Sciences Inc. of Ontario, Canada and distributed in the U.S. by Iovate Health Sciences USA near Buffalo, NY and is used by people trying to lose weight, as well as by bodybuilders looking to tone muscles. Because Hydroxycut is a dietary supplement it can be purchased in most grocery stores, health food stores and pharmacies. Hydroxycut products are heavily used as reports indicate that there were 9 million units sold in the United States in the last year.

We are investigating all Hydroxycut claims and reviewing cases where there has been liver failure, liver transplant or death from liver failure. Please feel free to contact the Reiff and Bily with any questions or concerns at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

April 16, 2009

Reiff And Bily Is Pleased To Announce

The Philadelphia catastrophic personal injury law firm of Reiff And Bily is pleased to announce that Andrew A. Solomon has recently joined our firm. Mr. Solomon has extensive experience representing plaintiffs in complex medical/professional negligence, products liability, civil rights and complex personal injury matters throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania since 1976. His practice has associated him with Marshall Bernstein, Esquire, Lawrence Evans Grant, Esquire, Thomas B. Rutter, Esquire, Andrew E. DiPiero, Esquire, John Dodig, Past President of The Philadelphia Trial Lawyers Association.

Mr. Solomon has tried numerous complex personal injury cases to significant verdict.

April 3, 2009

Trailer Detachment - The “Hidden” Cause Of Multiple Fatalities and Catastrophic Injuries - An Experienced Philadelphia Product Liability Lawyer Speaks Out

For many months, I have been blogging about the dangers of defective trailer hitches and the lack of safety posed to otherwise innocent and unsuspecting victims by many trailers being pulled by vehicles. According to NHTSA statistics, every week in the United States there are 418 injuries, 8 deaths and 775 incidents of property damage caused by vehicles towing trailers. One of the unsung heroes of the defective trailer crisis in an individual known as Ron Melancon who maintains a website at his own expense known as dangeroustrailers.org. Ron maintains a daily vigil on trailer accidents occurring throughout the United States and the world and has tirelessly worked on behalf of those injured by these vehicles to lobby the government and industry to mandate safer standards, guidelines and quality control.

Recently an incident occurred in Oregon where a trailer being pulled by an RV came loose while transiting thorough a tunnel causing another vehicle traveling in the opposite direction to crash head on into the trailer. It is important to recognize that the utility trailer industry has continued to stop any attempts to improve trailer safety. It is continuously important to recognize that trailers under the weight of 3,000 lbs. are unregulated in most states in this country. State codes in most of our states are silent as to any design or construction specification for those vehicles or for towing chains and hitches. The utility trailer industry maintains a strong lobby to stop any attempts to improve this class of vehicle in all 50 states by not requiring a federal standard on trailer hitches since 1972.

The defective trailer hitch attorneys at Reiff and Bily join Ron Melancon and other committed consumer safety advocates to bring a new national standard to implement, improve, reduce and eliminate deaths and catastrophic injuries due to defective trailer hitches and defective trailer manufacturer. If you or a loved one has been involved in an accident resulting from a defective trailer or caused by a trailer being towed by another vehicle, please contact the defective trailer and defective trailer hitch attorneys at Reiff and Bily at 1-800-421-9595 or contact us online for a free no obligation consultation at www.reiffandbily.com.

The experienced lawyers at Reiff and Bily have been handling thousands of catastrophic injury cases and fatalities since 1979 and are committed to promoting safety on our roads and highways.

April 2, 2009

Premise Liability Lawsuit At Burger King Resolves For $20 Million

A young man and his sister were playing at a playground inside a Burger King Restaurant in August 2005 when the young boy fell injuring his lungs and sustained a traumatic brain injury and closed head trauma. The playground structure at Burger King included a fireman’s pole and monkey bars and had no rubber matting beneath it, just tile. Not so surprisingly, the defendant’s allegedly claimed that the responsibility for watching the children was with the father; however, the father and his family maintained in the lawsuit that there is an expectation of safety inherent in these types of situations. Furthermore, they alleged that warning signs were not posted at the particular restaurant where the young man fell even though other restaurants in the Burger King chain had posted warning signs. Injuries to the young man resulted in hospitalization for four months and today he is still undergoing rehabilitation for significant brain damage.

When an individual enters a restaurant such as Burger King or any other business for that matter, the owner and operator of that premises owes you the highest duty of care. In Pennsylvania, a person harmed by an unsafe condition on another’s property may have a case for monetary compensation. Premises liability accidents such as this often produce catastrophic and extremely painful injuries such as spinal cord damage, broken bones, dislocated joints, as well as traumatic brain injuries. Another common premise liability claim also involves inadequate security or failure to warn of a dangerous condition or defect.

The premises liability lawyers at Reiff and Bily are committed to protecting the rights of individuals injured when on the premises of another. Reiff and Bily provides free online evaluation for all premise liability claims. You may contact us for a free no obligation consultation at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com. We are also involved with swimming accidents, casino accidents, hotel accidents and cruise line accidents.

April 1, 2009

Yamaha and The Consumer Product Safety Commission Finally Releases Recall For Dangerous Rhino Vehicle - Philadelphia Vehicle Rollover Lawyer Weighs In

The Philadelphia SUV rollover and 15-passenger van rollover lawyers of Reiff and Bily have been blogging for months about the unsafe qualities of the Yamaha Rhino. The Yamaha Rhino has been prone to rollover from the first day it was sold.

We have learned today that the Consumer Product Safety Commission and Yamaha has finally issued a recall for thousands of Rhino 450 and 660 off-road vehicles. Yamaha has stopped selling the vehicles until they can repair them and has officially informed owners that they should stop using them until they can be repaired. The CPSC has investigated more than 50 incidents, including 46 deaths, involving the two models in rollover unbelted incidents. We have consistently stated that the Yamaha Rhino is one of the most dangerous vehicles manufactured and in use. We are grateful that the probe by the Consumer Products Safety Commission resulted in this definitive action which will hopefully save many more lives and avoid many more catastrophic injuries. We are well aware of many accidents which indicated that the design of the Yamaha Rhino poses a substantial risk of injury and death to unknowing consumers. According to many complaints filed and expert opinions, the Yamaha Rhino is prone to rollover even while operating on slow speeds and flat surfaces due to its high center of gravity and narrow wheel base combined with powerful engine and small turning radius.

The Philadelphia product liability lawyers at Reiff and Bily has achieved a national reputation in the area of product liability and rollover accidents and in recognition of their accomplishments, Jeffrey Reiff and Raymond Bily have been named Superlawyers for six consecutive years by Law and Politics Magazine and Philadelphia Magazine. If you have any questions or concerns regarding a Yamaha Rhino rollover, you can contact an experienced Philadelphia rollover attorney at Reiff and Bily by calling toll free at 1-800-421-9595 or by submitting the firm’s online free case consultation form at www.reiffandbily.com.

March 27, 2009

Is Your Baby’s Pacifier Safe - 2,900 Baby Necessity Pacifiers Recalled

A recent recall notes that approximately 29,000 baby necessities pacifiers manufactured in China and imported by OKK Trading of Los Angeles, California has been recalled because they failed Federal safety tests. The nipples can separate from the base and pose a choking hazard to infants. Although no incidents have been reported, these pacifiers which sold at dollar and discount stores around the United States between August 2007 and January 2009. More details are available by phone at 877-655-8697 and on the web at http://www.okktrading.com or http://www.cpsc.gov.

If you or a loved one has been injured due to a defective product, please contact the Philadelphia product liability lawyers at the law firm of Reiff and Bily at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

March 26, 2009

Hazardous Highchairs Recalled By Fisher-Price

The Pennsylvania product liability lawyers at Reiff and Bily alert you in conjunction with the United States Consumer Products Safety Commission in cooperation with Fisher-Price that a voluntary recall has been made of 3-in-1 high chairs manufactured by Fisher-Price. The product is 3-in-1 highchairs. Approximately 24,000 units are involved in the recall. The importer is Fisher-Price of East Aurora, New York. The noted hazard is that the seat can fall backwards from the highchair frame if the booster seat release is unlatched while the child is in the product. Also, the seat back can detach if not fully snapped in place posing a fall hazard and risk to young children. Reports of seat back detachment and child falling out resulted in a skull fracture according to sources. This product was sold exclusively at Target department stores nationwide from December 8, 2008 through March, 2009 for approximately $100. Consumers should stop using the recalled high chairs immediately and contact Fisher-Price for instructions and a free repair kit at 1-800-432-5437 anytime or visit the firm’s Web site at http://service.mattel.com/us.

If you or a loved one has been injured as a result of a defective product, please contact one of our Philadelphia product liability lawyers at the law firm of Reiff and Bily for a free evaluation of your case at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

March 18, 2009

12-Month Old Child Falls Off Electric Train Amusement Striking His Head And Rendered Unconscious At Shopping Center Amusement Attraction

How many of you remember looking forward to going to the supermarket or shopping at the mall with your Mom and Dad and getting on the horse ride or car ride which in my day was 10 cents but probably now a dollar as I have watched prices escalate for a sheer three minutes of pleasure.

Unfortunately a recent story surfaced which noted a 12-month old boy struck his head riding an electric train amusement ride at a shopping center. Paramedics were called and when they arrived they found the mother hysterical carrying her unconscious toddler. CPR was performed according to news sources and the child was air lifted to the hospital.

Although this was a train ride evidently designed to amuse children and bring people to the mall and although inspectors may find that the train ride was mechanically and structurally sound and is in compliance with local standards, parents and the operators of these rides recognize that there should be minimum supervisory and physical requirements that are mandatory for safety reasons. These rides are designed to provide amusement thrills and not to cause errors but accidents still happen under the best of circumstances.

Unfortunately, many amusement rides which look safe are unknowingly dangerous forms of entertainment for families and young people. I have written in my blogs in the past about numerous amusement park and carnival accidents and serious loopholes that exist in the Consumer Product Safety Act of 1981 regulating the safety of rides fixed to a specific site. There is no official source which keeps a complete record of amusement park accidents.

The accomplished amusement park injury lawyers at Reiff and Bily have successfully represented personal injury clients for catastrophic injuries since 1979 recovering hundreds of millions of dollars in damages. If you or a loved one has been injured in an amusement park or on a hayride, please contact the amusement park injury lawyers at Reiff and Bily immediately at 1-800-421-9595 so that we can commence an intensive examination of your claim and begin protecting your legal rights to the maximum of our abilities.

March 17, 2009

34-Year Old Woman Dies When Trailer Detaches From A Moving Van

The Philadelphia defective truck and trailer accident lawyers of Reiff and Bily have unfortunately become aware of another situation involving the wrongful death of a 34-year old woman on Wednesday, March 11, 2009. The case not so dissimilar from many others, the woman was pinned between a car and a trailer that had detached from a moving van resulting in blunt force trauma to her chest and abdomen resulting in fatality.

This unfortunate fatal result occurred in the initial stages of a family vacation where the woman, her husband and two children were planning to travel to Florida in a van that was towing a trailer which ultimately became detached and caused her death.

We have noted many times on our blog every week in the United States there are 418 injuries, 8 deaths and 775 incidents of property damage caused by passenger vehicles towing trailers. According to The National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has estimated the number of serious injuries has risen dramatically involving the use of defective trailers.

If you or a family member has suffered an injury as a result of a defective truck or trailer accident, there are some important questions that you and your attorney will have to explore in order to determine if you have a case and who is responsible. We have an experienced team of investigators, experts and reconstructionists who will determine how the accident occurred and who is liable. You may be entitled to compensatory and punitive damages.

The accomplished defective trailer and car accident lawyers at Reiff and Bily have successfully represented thousands of personal injury clients for catastrophic injuries and fatalities since 1979 and have recovered in excess of $150 million dollars in damages. For a free consultation, please contact the experienced truck and defective trailer lawyers at Reiff and Bily at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com immediately for a free consultation so that we can begin protecting your legal rights.

January 27, 2009

Amusement Park Settles Wrongful Death Lawsuit In 2007 Death of A Girl Who Fell 50 Feet To Her Death At An Amusement Park Swing Chair Accident - Young Man Injured On Roger Rabbit Amusement Dies

According to a report in the Green Bay Press Gazette, a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of a 16-year old girl who fell 50 feet to her death in a 2007 amusement park swing accident was settled for $1 million dollars the maximum amount of policy limits.

It is also sad to note and report that Brandon Zucker, a young boy who was badly hurt in a “Roger Rabbit” amusement accident in Disneyland died January 26, 2009. According to news sources, Brandon Zucker, an Anaheim, California boy, suffered brain damage after being trapped under the car of a Disneyland Park ride in September 2000. At age 4, the young boy was badly injured when he fell from a Roger Rabbit Disneyland ride and was dragged about 10 feet, trapped underneath another car and suffered serious internal injuries including torn diaphragm, liver and spleen. The boy’s body was crushed by the ride, and he went into cardiac arrest suffering brain damage and was unable to walk or talk after the accident. Brandon’s mother, Victoria Zucker, stated that Brandon fought hard for the past 8 years. Our hearts and prayers go out to Brandon’s family.

Continue reading "Amusement Park Settles Wrongful Death Lawsuit In 2007 Death of A Girl Who Fell 50 Feet To Her Death At An Amusement Park Swing Chair Accident - Young Man Injured On Roger Rabbit Amusement Dies" »

December 22, 2008

Sickos Molest The Sick

Just when you thought you were safe after calling 911, you may be in the hands of a predator. Recently a story came across the wires that caused me an unusual amount of concern. Reportedly over the past 18 months at least 129 ambulance attendants across the United States have been accused of sexually related crimes on or off duty according to an investigation by The Associated Press. Alarmingly, many patients were molested while riding in the back of an ambulance.

State health officials in 23 states reported receiving sexually related complaints involving EMS workers. It is quite disturbing to think that while one is in the most disabled state and incapacitated traveling the back of an ambulance one could be assaulted or fondled by a sexual predator.

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December 16, 2008

Defective Trailer Breaks Loose From Pickup Truck and Kills Pennsylvania Woman

According to news sources, a deadly crash occurred on Route 19 in North Strabane, Pennsylvania when a trailer broke loose from a pickup truck striking a car and killing a woman. A utility trailer broke loose from a pickup truck as it was headed south on Route 19 causing the trailer to bounce over the medial strip landing on a car in the passing lane headed north. The car then caught fire and two woman who were in the front seat were killed and a young girl, 3 or 4 years old, was in the back seat. (news article)

Michelle Kott, 36, of Ellsworth was killed.

Many crashes involving trailers stem from basic mistakes such as failing to engage a locking device when hitching a trailer and often operators and drivers neglect a series of precautions any one of which might have prevented such a deadly, catastrophic tragedy.

A Master lock company which makes hitches and other towing equipment surveyed more than 300 trailer owners in 2006 and found that most were lacking in knowledge of basic safety and proper towing procedures and few have had any real training or instruction. Fewer than half properly attach their trailer safety chains the survey found. Adding to the risk is the growing number of trailers on the road. The number of light duty trailers registered in the United States rose from 10.6 million in 1990 to 15.9 million in 2005 according to the Federal Highway Administration. In all 50 states one only need a basic driver’s license in order to tow a small to medium size trailer. Basically, there is no law enforcement program that requires a person towing a trailer to have any special training. The result is a lot of ignorance, carelessness and catastrophic injuries and deaths.

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December 11, 2008

Misrepresenting the Truth to Your Lawyer About Previous Claims Could Be Hazardous to Your Case

What the average client does not know is that insurance companies track all legal claims that an individual makes against homeowners, workmen’s compensation and auto insurance policies. The two major databases that insurance companies use to keep track of previous claims are The Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange (CLUE) and The Automated Property Loss Underwriting System (A-PLUS).

Continue reading "Misrepresenting the Truth to Your Lawyer About Previous Claims Could Be Hazardous to Your Case" »

November 24, 2008

Invisible Brain Injury From Car Accidents A Hidden Danger That Can Destroy Families If Not Diagnosed

Traumatic brain injury and closed head traumas are all to common in catastrophic car accidents. The Philadelphia car accident lawyers at Reiff and Bily recently received a call from a client whose mother sustained a closed head trauma and an acquired brain injury as a result of being a passenger in a serious car accident. When a catastrophic brain injury occurs, it does not affect individuals, it affects families. Many times brain injuries are an invisible disability and it is easy for the condition to be unnoticed, undiagnosed and unsupported and many doctors will state that no two brain injuries are alike. One of the main causes of brain injuries in the United States are car accidents. Most individuals who sustain a brain injury do not even realize that they have one. In our case, the victim began to display irregular and abnormal behavior patterns to her husband and daughter.

If you have been involved in a car accident or other catastrophic accident and suffer any one of the following symptoms, you may have suffered a brain injury:

loss of short term/long term memory
dizziness
agitation
blurred vision
loss of coordination
paresthesia
pins and needles in the limbs
weakness in the extremities
seizures
difficulty hearing
nausea/vomiting
irregular eye movement
loss of smell
loss of taste
affectation of cognitive thought process
convulsions

Continue reading "Invisible Brain Injury From Car Accidents A Hidden Danger That Can Destroy Families If Not Diagnosed" »

November 21, 2008

Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority To Pay $500,000 in Bicyclist 2005 Death

The Erie Metropolitan Transit Authority has agreed to pay $500,000 to settle a lawsuit filed against the Pennsylvania agency and the bus driver over an accident that killed an Erie surgeon in 2005. The 36 year old surgeon, David Sanders, was riding his bicycle when the bus collided with him. He was pronounced dead at the scene. This bus was making a left hand turn at the time of the accident. There is no question that this is a huge tragedy for Dr. Sanders’ family and friends and the local community and we offer our heartfelt sympathies to everyone who knew and loved him. (news article)

Bicycle ridership is on the upswing in Pennsylvania and so are the injuries and fatalities. The Philadelphia bicycle accident and catastrophic injury lawyers at the Philadelphia personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily have been successfully representing injured bicyclists since 1979. Approximately 11% of all traffic fatalities involve bicycles. I have worked hard as a Philadelphia bicycle accident attorney for the past 30 years to help injured cyclists and the families of cyclists who have been died as the result of the negligence of other drivers. As more and more individuals turn to bicycles as a viable means of transportation, as well as to relieve the stress of our increasingly complicated society, bicycle accidents will no doubt continuously be on the rise.

The Philadelphia bicycle accident law firm of Reiff and Bily has extensive experience working with bicycle accident cases and can assist you in assessing and protecting your legal rights. If you or a loved one has been involved in a bicycle accident and need advice of your legal rights and you are not at fault, please contact one of the experienced lawyers at the Philadelphia bicycle accident and personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily. We will fully evaluate liability fault, legal compensation for pain and suffering, medical compensation and make sure that you are fully compensated for your injuries.

Bicycles share the same laws as motor vehicle and motor vehicle operators owe a duty to be attentive to bicycle riders. If you are in need of legal advice or services and wish to speak to an experienced Philadelphia bicycle accident attorney, please contact one of our experienced lawyers at the Philadelphia catastrophic injury firm of Reiff and Bily for a no cost, no obligation case evaluation and pre-litigation consultation at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

November 20, 2008

Cargo Container Falls Off Flatbed Trailer Truck And Kills Innocent Pennsylvania Woman

A catastrophic trucking accident took the life of an eastern Pennsylvania woman after her vehicle collided with a cargo container which was knocked off of a flatbed trailer truck that struck an overpass on Route 22 in Lehigh County. Sadly, 42-year old Michele Lamaze of Whitehall Township was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash this past Tuesday. The truck driver, a 29-year old Ohio resident, was not injured. According to a State Police investigation no charges have been filed.

Although many, including the newspaper, has called this a “freak” accident, unfortunately the situation is not so unusual. Full details and photographs of this deadly crash are available on the following link. (news article)

The experienced truck and trailer accident lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily offer their deepest condolences to the family of Michele Lamaze who died in this tragic and unfortunate accident. Obviously, she was in the wrong place at the wrong time and was the victim of someone’s negligence.

Unfortunately, freeway debris and containers falling from trucks is not so infrequent on Pennsylvania highways. In Pennsylvania a motorist can be fined and held liable for dropping anything from their vehicle onto the roadway which causes an accident to occur. In addition to fines, they can be held civilly and criminally responsible for the consequences of the debris on the highways. Reiff and Bily has successfully handled many major injury and fatality cases caused by highway debris and objects falling from trucks and trailers. A person injured in an car accident caused by highway debris and falling objects has the right to be compensated for their injuries not only from the person who drops the debris on the highway but also from their own uninsured and underinsured motorist provision of their automobile policy. An experienced Pennsylvania personal injury attorney will tell the family of the injured or deceased how their Pennsylvania motor vehicle policy would apply to a roadway debris or trailer debris accident. I sincerely urge the family of Michele Lamaze to consult with an experienced Pennsylvania truck accident or automobile accident attorney who would help and hold the negligent parties responsible and help secure them the compensation they are rightfully deserve and are owed under the laws of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

If you would or a loved one has been catastrophically injured in an automobile accident and would like a free consultation with an experienced Philadelphia auto accident attorney, please contact one of the lawyers at Reiff and Bily at 1-800-431-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

November 19, 2008

The Vehicle Most Likely to Rollover, Injure And Kill Innocent Children and Churchgoers Is The 15-Passenger Van - 15- Passenger Van Lawyer Warns Consumers

For many years, the 15-passenger van accident and SUV rollover lawyers at Reiff and Bily have been representing passengers that have been catastrophically injured or killed while being transported in 15 passenger vans that have flipped over. The rollover risk posed by 15 passenger vans, including those predominantly used by church groups, school groups and other unsuspecting individuals, is the most dangerous on the road today. 15 passenger vans started out as cargo utility vehicles in the early 1970's and is still essentially a cargo van with modifications made to accommodate passengers. If a 15 passenger van is fully loaded it is 6 to 7 times more likely to flip over than a van containing only a driver. As a matter of fact, NHTSA has noted that fully loaded 15 passenger vans are more likely to rollover than any other passenger type of vehicle, including cars, mini vans, SUVs and pickup trucks.

Internal documents by the major automotive manufacturers, including but not limited to Ford, Chrysler and GM, revealed that the companies were and still are well aware of safety and deficiencies with the 15-passenger van. However, the manufacturing of these passenger vehicles and the transition from cargo to passenger vans became too profitable and the automobile manufacturers have made a consistent effort to place profitability over consumer safety. Documentation of testing data indicates that the engineers who designed these cars knew they were unsafe and suggested necessary fixes to protect innocent and unsuspecting consumers. Initially in April 2001, NHTSA issued a report on the rollover propensity of 15-passenger vans. It is significant that NHTSA had never done this for any other vehicle and during that time period there had been approximately 800 fatalities.

Continue reading "The Vehicle Most Likely to Rollover, Injure And Kill Innocent Children and Churchgoers Is The 15-Passenger Van - 15- Passenger Van Lawyer Warns Consumers" »

November 18, 2008

Philadelphia 15-Passenger Van Attorney Salutes Efforts of American Center For Van and Tire Safety

I was recently contacted by Patrick James who lost his 10-year old daughter, Alexis James, on July 17, 2007 in a 15-passenger van rollover in South Carolina. Unfortunately, according to the investigation, the accident resulted from the failure of the left rear tire. When the tire failed, the van rolled over and beautiful Alexis James was ejected from the vehicle though she was wearing her seat belt. It was only a lap seat belt. Three point lap/shoulder belts were not required in this van when it was manufactured in 1994. Patrick James founded the American Center for Van and Tire Safety. I urge all of you to review Patrick’s website at www.acfvats.org. Patrick’s story is an all to familiar story to members of the 15 passenger van rollover law firm of Reiff and Bily.

Unfortunately, our lawyers have handled too many cases similar to the loss of Alexis James and have shared the pain of losses of all too many parents and children. We applaud Patrick James’ efforts to inform unknowing consumers of the danger of these death machines and salute the his effort to keep the public continuously informed. Every time I learn of another one of these tragic cases, I think of the senseless loss of lives and wrongful death of the innocent and unknowing occupants of these vans.

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November 15, 2008

Yamaha Rhino Rollovers

Government Investigates "Rhino Rollover” Virus

Yamaha promises its Rhino goes "almost anywhere" referring to its new breed of Utility Terrain Vehicle or U.T.V.'s. What the ad fails to mention is that federal safety regulators are investigating the safety of this vehicle following reports of approximately 30 deaths including two young girls last month. Yamaha Rhino Rollovers

According to a recently published article in The Wall Street Journal on November 4, 2008 Yamaha currently faces more than 200 lawsuits in State and Federal courts alleging that Rhino design is unsafe. (Wall Street Journal article)

Due to their unique design, Rhinos are not subject to the safety standards of all terrain vehicle (ATV's) or even more stringent car safety standards. The Yamaha Rhino ATV is alleged to be unstable during normal operating maneuvers at low to moderate speeds and turning on level ground.

Characteristically, low speed turns lead to sudden rollovers causing the occupants' arms and legs to be crushed by the roll cage as the vehicle slams to the ground.

The Philadelphia SUV rollover firm of Reiff and Bily has represented individuals across the United States who have suffered injuries in SUV and ATV rollovers. If you or anyone you know has been injured in a Yamaha Rhino accident, please contact the ATV and SUV rollover firm of Reiff and Bily for a free consultation at 1- 800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com and we will promptly review your case and assist you in recovering damages for pain and suffering along with both future and past medical expenses without fee or obligation to you.

November 14, 2008

The Dangerous Trailer and Hayride Injury Lawyers of Reiff and Bily Proudly Salute the Efforts of Ron J. Melancon of Richmond, Virginia

Philadelphia Amusement and Hayride Accident Lawyers of Reiff and Bily Salute Ron Melancon and dangeroustrailers.org

Ron has been a step ahead of government officials and many lawyers. Ron has recognized that many trailers used for hayrides and other utilities are under 3,000 lbs. and fall below federal guidelines. These trailers do not need to be inspected. You can build one on your own and use it yourself or sell it. As Ron has recognized, there is very little regulation addressed with trailers under 3,000 lbs. Most state laws are silent regarding design or construction specification for utility trailers used in hayrides or for towing hitches. Obviously, a potentially dangerous situation exists using these trailers for hayrides or even on the roads of the Commonwealth. In many cases, we find trailers have obvious violations of safety codes that related to lighting, braking and inspection requirements.

The unregulation of the hayride and trailer obviously allows profit hungry operators to cut corners on safety, often leading to preventable catastrophic injuries of innocent children.

We urge you to link to Ron’s website at www.dangeroustrailers.org. We salute Ron’s efforts to become a crusader for public safety and in his attempts to keep the public informed of the dangerous situations of unregulated trailers and hayrides in the United States and abroad. Consumer advocacy is what change in laws and regulations is all about.

Continue reading "The Dangerous Trailer and Hayride Injury Lawyers of Reiff and Bily Proudly Salute the Efforts of Ron J. Melancon of Richmond, Virginia" »

November 13, 2008

Another Person Dead and Two Others Injured in 15-Passenger Van Rollover

Unfortunately, and not surprisingly, a 15-passenger Ford Econoline van took the life of an innocent man and injured ten others Saturday, November 10, 2008 when the van lost control causing it to go sideways, eventually resulting in a multiple roll on Interstate 90. There was not alcohol use detected. According to the accident reports, the driver was driving westbound on Interstate 90 when he lost control of the 15-passenger van. Our hearts and prayers go out to the individuals in this van who were probably not aware of the dangers of 15-passenger vans and their tendency to rollover and cause catastrophic injury and fatality. (news article)

NTHSA’s research and the research of the automotive manufacturers indicate that there is significant risk of rollover in 15-passenger vans when fully loaded. Often times, 15-passenger van rollover crashes are due to defective tires and inexperienced and untrained drivers.
The experienced 15-passenger van attorneys at Reiff and Bily believe that the victims of this unfortunate accident should contact an experienced 15-passenger van and rollover attorney to investigate this accident and get them proper compensation that they rightfully deserve from the manufacturers of these knowingly defective vans. If you or a loved one has been injured in a 15-passenger van accident, please contact us for a free consultation at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

November 12, 2008

Triple Fatal DUI Car Accident Jails 23 Year Old Woman

According to an article published by The Lancaster Intelligencer Journal on October 30, 2008, Sarah Timblin, 23, of Lancaster County was sentenced to 18 years in state prison for being intoxicated when she drove her SUV the wrong way on a two lane highway in Manheim Township, Pennsylvania. Her SUV struck a Honda Civic head on, killing all three people inside the vehicle. Three York, Pennsylvania men traveling to work were pronounced dead at the scene of the accident. Ironically, the date of Sarah Timblin’s sentencing was the birthday of one of the deceased workers. Tests revealed that Ms. Timblin’s blood alcohol level at the time of the crash was more than three times the level at which a person is considered legally drunk in Pennsylvania. Sarah Timblin’s sentence rightfully reflects the gravity and severity of her negligent act, an act that ultimately contributed to three senseless and untimely deaths. Lancaster County President Judge, Louis Ferina, sentenced Sarah Timblin to the mandatory 9 year prison term for three felony counts of homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence. The judge also ordered Ms. Timblin to 6 years probation after her release from prison. (news article)

The catastrophic injury lawyers at Reiff and Bily salute Judge Louis Ferina for setting an excellent example to deter other DUI fatalities from occurring in Pennsylvania. I offer my heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased for their irreparable losses. 23 year old Sarah Timblin should be held criminally and civilly responsible for this accident and the deaths of these working men. She had no regard for the law, traffic rules and most of all for the life of other human beings. In 2007 there were 1,491 fatal traffic accidents in Pennsylvania as a result of driving under the influence. The families of the victims deserve to be rightfully compensated for this tremendous loss. Anyone in this situation would be well advised to contact a reputed, experienced Philadelphia car accident attorney to file a wrongful death claim on their behalf and fight for their rights. The driver of the vehicle that struck them was uninsured and did not have enough insurance. The injured individuals or the families of the deceased individuals would be able to seek compensation through their own uninsured or underinsured motorist coverage.

If you or someone you love has been seriously injured in a car accident, please contact the experienced Philadelphia car accidents lawyers at Reiff and Bily at 1-800 421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com to discuss your case.

November 11, 2008

Pennsylvania Woman Charged With DUI and Vehicular Homicide in Mother’s Crash Death

Yet another tragic story came across the wires reporting that a Pennsylvania woman was accused of drunk driving. The 25 year old woman was charged with vehicular homicide while driving under the influence along with related crimes of death. According to news sources on September 1, 2007, 25 year old, Heather Renee Werner, of Hyndman, Pa. was speeding when she lost control of her vehicle and struck an embankment before rolling over repeatedly. Susan Fleegle, a 48 year old passenger in the car was ejected from the car and died. Steven Huffman, another passenger in the car sustained severe injuries from the accident. Police records indicate that Ms. Werner’s blood alcohol level was 0.115% above the legal limit of 0.08%. We at Reiff and Bily offer our heartfelt condolences to the family of Susan Fleegle for their loss and extend our best wishes for a speedy recovery to Mr. Huffman. (news article)

Indeed, Heather Werner should be held criminally and civilly responsible for this devastating accident that resulted in death to one passenger and inflicted injuries to the other. Driving with a blood alcohol level 0.115% above the legal limit is indicative of the fact that Ms. Werner has little respect for the law, traffic rules and most importantly herself and the safety of her passengers. The families of Susan Fleegle and Steven Hoffman deserve to be rightfully compensated for their tremendous loss. They would be well advised to contact a reputed Pennsylvania personal injury accident attorney who would file a wrongful death claim on their behalf and fight for their rights. If the driver of the vehicle is uninsured and does not have sufficient insurance, it would be appropriate to look at the underinsured or uninsured policies maintain by Susan Fleegle or her family, as well as the uninsured or underinsured insurance policies maintained by passenger, Steven Huffman.

Continue reading "Pennsylvania Woman Charged With DUI and Vehicular Homicide in Mother’s Crash Death" »

November 10, 2008

New Jersey Man Was Killed in Philadelphia When His SUV Crashed into a Trolley Platform and Flipped Over

According to investigators, an unidentified man was driving south on Island Avenue in southwest Philadelphia when his Chevy Avalanche SUV struck a raised trolley stop platform at the Buist Avenue intersection. The SUV flipped and the driver sustained massive head injuries in the crash. He was pronounced dead later that morning. This represents yet another single vehicle SUV rollover in what seems to be an epidemic in Philadelphia and nationally.

At the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily we would be interested to see the results of the investigation of this crash. Most likely, there was a roof crush, which is common for General Motors Company SUVs. The injuries and resulting fatality was most likely caused by the collapsing roof or seat belt failure. The victim’s family would be well served by consulting one of many excellent auto defect firms in the nation that are truly experienced in handling General Motors SUV litigation. When hiring an SUV rollover accident attorney, ask the attorney how many similar cases they have completed and how many they have in progress. You might also want to know how many auto defect cases in total they have successfully completed. More than 40,000 people die is SUV rollover accident in the United States each year. Many of these rollover accident fatalities involve SUVs.

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November 7, 2008

Pennsylvania Defective Product Laws Jeopardized By Federal Agencies

Jeffrey Reiff, a Pennsylvania Product Liability Attorney, expresses concern that federal agencies are blocking the roadway to justice.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), The Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), The Pipeline and Hazardous Material Safety Administration (PHMSA), The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and The Transportation Safety Authority (TSA) have all broken with long-standing agency precedents, claiming authority to provide immunity from state laws. Many members of Congress, and this Philadelphia personal injury lawyer, believe that the agencies have overstepped their constitutional bounds.

A recent report issued by The American Association of Justice entitled “Get Out of Jail Free: How the Bush Administration Helps Corporations Escape Accountability” spotlights efforts by the Bush administration and several federal agencies headed by political appointees to negate the effect of state laws that protect consumers and injured workers, in effect granting immunity to irresponsible corporations. Since the Bush administration first came into power, there has been an unprecedented attack on trial lawyers and those who protect the rights of injured consumers. By pushing to allow complete immunity from lawsuits for corporations, whether through legislation or agency rule, the American public pays. Injured persons will not receive restitution from greedy corporations who sold unsafe products or the federal agencies that cut off their rights. Ultimately, industry will get immunity from state tort claims and the states and their taxpayers will be forced to pick up the hundreds of millions, or billions, of dollars a year in costs to support those who become permanently disabled and no longer have recourse via the courts to recoup their expenses.

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November 6, 2008

Another 15-Passenger Church Van Rolls Over Killing Occupants

Yet another 15-passenger van carrying 12 passengers with the notation “Christian Faith Fellowship Ministry” on its side rolled over after a tire blew out while traveling on the roadway of a Phoenix suburb. 15-passenger vans have been made the travel vehicle of choice by large groups of people and their cargo. Unfortunately, these unsafe and unstable motor vehicles are often used for transporting church groups.

The Philadelphia15-passenger van rollover law firm of Reiff and Bily has been investigating, testing and researching defective design components of 15-passenger vans and 15-passenger van rollover cases across the United States for many years. The incident that occurred in Arizona is almost identical to a case that the 15-passenger van rollover firm of Reiff and Bily handled a few years ago, also involving 14 church goers traveling to a church outing resulting in multiple deaths and catastrophic injury.

The 15-passenger van is extraordinarily easy to tip over when loaded because they have a higher center of gravity and design defects that create unsafe conditions and instability in an accident avoidance maneuver or if a tire problem occurs. Our extensive research has revealed that the manufacturers knew about these defects, which was evidenced in internal documents. Yet they continue to sell these defective vehicles due to their high profit margin, despite a minimal expenditure to fix the defect that they knew about even when their own test drivers and experts were being injured during testing procedures. Because these vehicles carry a large number of people and weight and the drivers are not required to have a special commercial driver’s license, they were once the smart choice for transporting millions of school children and church groups across the United States until reports of rollover deaths in 15-passenger vans began rolling in.

If you or a loved one has been injured in an SUV rollover accident, you have a legal right to hold the manufacturer responsible for your physical and financial injuries and make them admit in court what they have known all along - that these vehicles are simply not safe. Our hearts and prayers go out to these folks whose injuries and deaths could have been easily prevented.

If you or someone you care about has been injured or killed in a rollover accident, contact the experienced 15-passenger van rollover lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily today for a free legal consultation. Contact us at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

November 5, 2008

Halloween Hayride Kills Toddler

One year old Zoe Montgomery was killed last week when she was run over during a Halloween hayride at the Orr Family Farm, at an Oklahoma farm themed amusement park. The toddler fell under the wheels of the trailer during the hayride. According to news reports, the incident occurred when Zoe’s mother, Carie Montgomery, attempted to get Zoe off the back of a trailer. The mother tried to get her child off of the ride when the trailer jerked suddenly, sending Zoe flying to the ground near the wheels. Carie Montgomery, 24, threw herself at her daughter in an attempt to save her. The toddler was air lifted to OU Medical Center where doctors pronounced her dead. (news article)

Tragically, Zoe Montgomery’s story is not unique. The experienced lawyers at the Pennsylvania catastrophic injury law firm of Reiff and Bily are currently involved in a very similar claim for catastrophic injuries where a young student on a school trip was trapped and pulled under a Halloween hayride in Bucks County, Pennsylvania one year ago and was mangled due to inadequate supervision or training of the ride operators and inadequate site and safety crowd control. Simply put, similar to the situation that occurred with Zoe’s unfortunate death, the operators of the hayride had inadequate safety controls in effect to prevent an easily avoidable accident, particularly in an area that was noisy and frequently visited by young children. Many of the hayrides and other amusement park accidents are simply accidents waiting to happen when proper control mechanisms are not in place. When amusement park and hayride injuries occur, the injuries are quite significant because of the number of people involved and the size and weight of the equipment. These rides have the ability to crush, pin and eject riders causing catastrophic injuries. We express our heartfelt condolences to the family of Zoe Montgomery and sincerely hope that state officials and investigators do a thorough job in investigating this horrific and catastrophic accident.

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November 4, 2008

Halloween Hayride Crushes Bones of Innocent Rider

In yet another horrifying Halloween hayride accident, an Ohio woman was transported to Ohio State University Medical Center after she fell off the side of a Halloween hayride and was pinned underneath the wheels. The individual identified by news sources as Tonya Reynolds suffered a broken arm and her legs were crushed by the ride according to officials. (news article)

In a separate situation, a 7 year old New Jersey boy was left in critical condition after falling from a hayride and striking his head. According to the news report, Jacob George was a passenger on a haunted hayride at the Shrine of St. Joseph Church on Long Hill Road in Stirling, NJ on Friday, October 24th, when he fell off the trailer he was riding on and suffered head injuries. He was transported to Morristown Memorial Hospital where he remained in critical condition. Members of the Morris County, New Jersey Sheriff’s Office Accident Reconstruction Team assisted with the investigation and shut down the ride. (news article )

It is with great sadness that I read about these easily preventable and tragic incidents. As a catastrophic injury attorney in Pennsylvania, I have spent a good portion of the last year working on an almost identical hayride case where a six year old boy on a class outing was also run over by a Halloween hayride, as his mother also instinctively threw herself at her son in an attempt to save him. All of these accidents certainly indicate the necessity of improving safety, supervision, maintenance and warning requirements when dealing with amusement rides and Halloween hayrides where the lives of unsuspecting and innocent children are so frequently involved. My deepest and heartfelt sympathies go out to these families.

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November 3, 2008

Two Pennsylvania Residents Are Dead Following Single Vehicle SUV Rollover Crash

Two Pennsylvania residents were killed following a single rollover crash that occurred on Interstate 80 when their sport utility vehicle went out of control and rolled over. The driver was identified as 75 year old Jack Kelly and his passenger was 73 year old Lois Kelly, both of Carlisle, Pennsylvania, died in the crash.

Almost one third of all fatalities from vehicle accidents in the United States occur as a result of a rollover of a sport utility vehicle or 15-passenger van. You should also know that 70% of deaths in sport utility vehicles occur as a result of a rollover. Most SUVs lack proper roof support or rollbars that are necessary to provide vehicle occupants with the proper protection during a rollover accident.

At the Pennsylvania SUV rollover law firm of Reiff and Bily, we have been investigating, researching, and litigating SUV rollover and 15-passenger van rollover cases for many years with successful outcomes. The SUV has a high center of gravity and is noted to be one the most unstable vehicles on the highway. The press and the automotive manufacturers are quick to blame the driver who is simply taking an evasive action to avoid an emergency situation. The chief hazard in operating an SUV occurs when the driver takes an emergency action, steering the vehicle in one direction and rapidly correcting in the opposite direction, resulting in the rollover of the unstable vehicle. If you watch television advertisements or read the newspaper advertisements, one would think that SUVs are built for strength and safety and designed to be driven off the road. Yet very few of them have rollbars and very few meet minimal National Highway Safety Administration roof safety standards for automobiles. SUV rollovers are the most common cause of spinal cord injury and paralysis due to roof collapse.

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October 29, 2008

PENNSYLVANIA CAR INSURANCE DOES NOT PROVIDE FOR MANDATORY DEATH BENEFITS - TIME TO REVIEW YOUR INSURANCE POLICY

As an experienced Philadelphia personal injury attorney, I am confronted with clients who come into my office after a catastrophic automobile accident and they tell me that they have full automobile insurance coverage. Unfortunately, many times there is a car accident resulting in a fatality and the family is left without funds to pay for a proper funeral and when they look at their insurance policy, they learn that they are not covered for death benefits. Approximately once a week I am visited by clients involved in a Philadelphia car accident who believe that they have full coverage, including but not limited to full tort insurance coverage. Most of the time, these individuals were sold minimal policies by insurance agents that contain anything but full coverage.

Recently, an unfortunate story came across the wires involving the Mullen family in Athens, Pennsylvania who found out the hard way that their insurance did not cover them for death benefits. In that case, Missy Mullen’s daughter, Stephanie Mullen, was killed in a car accident on State Route 4014 in Smithville Township, Pennsylvania approximately one month ago. Missy Mullen learned that Stephanie’s Pennsylvania auto insurance policy did not have death benefits. The $5,000 cost for Stephanie’s funeral was paid by family and friends. Stephanie was cremated and now her ashes lay in a box on her bed at home and her family is in need of an additional $2,500 for the burial. Missy Mullen stated that she wanted more people to be aware of their insurance coverage so they would not have to go through something like this. (news article)

In most states, car insurance policies contain death benefits. However, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania only liability medical is required. We urge all of you to carefully examine your policies and if you have any questions regarding coverage, please do not hesitate to contact us for a free consultation.

If you or a loved one has been catastrophically injured in an accident, please contact us at 1-800-421-9595 or online at www.reiffandbily.com.

October 28, 2008

PENNSYLVANIA ELDER ABUSE LAWYERS REIFF AND BILY SALUTE PENNSYLVANIA LAWMAKERS IN THEIR EFFORTS TO REVIVE BILLS TO PREVENT ELDER ABUSE IN PENNSYLVANIA

Pennsylvania Rep. Jim Wansacz ,D-114; Karen Boback, R-117; Frank Andrews Shimkus, D-113; and Ken Smith, D-112, sponsored various new bills aimed at preventing neglect of the elderly by individuals responsible for their care. The bills would toughen penalties for care givers when the neglect of individuals in their care results in death, setting new reporting requirements for neglect cases, requiring physicians to disclose any financial ownership in a long term care facility, as well as requiring the facility provide advance notice as residents are relocated.

As an experienced Philadelphia personal injury lawyer practicing elder law abuse and nursing home abuse, I have been astounded by the preponderance of the declining quality of care at nursing homes and its direct relationship to the economic and insurance crisis. Nursing home and elder abuse has come to the attention of many government agencies and many lax laws and financial webs created by private investment companies who have ownership interest in nursing homes have made it very difficult for plaintiffs who have suffered harm to succeed in court and for regulators to levy chain-wide fines due to the creation of complex corporate structures that obscured who controlled the homes. A recent report issued by Health and Human Services has found that nearly all nursing homes in the United States have received citations for health and safety violations in 2007.

When placing a loved one in a nursing home one expects, and is the right of the resident, to live in a clean, healthy, attractive and safe environment, to receive proper medical care, nursing care and rehabilitative and restorative therapy, and personal hygiene. Also, the residents have a right to be informed of his or her medical condition unless the physician indicates in the medical records that it is not in the best interest of the patient to be told. Nursing home and elder abuse is a crime against the sick, elderly and helpless. Although many cases of nursing home abuse exist, many law firms are afraid to go after the mighty Wall Street investment firms that have so cleverly created corporate webs to protect their investments.

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October 27, 2008

US MILITARY FORCES MAKE SPECIAL TRAINING MANDATORY FOR MOTORCYCLE RIDERS - PHILADELPHIA MOTORCYCLE LAWYER, JEFFREY REIFF, SALUTES THESE EFFORTS

According to a recent article published by the New York Times on Sunday, October 26, 2008, so many members of the armed forces have been dying on motorcycles and sports bikes like the Ninja that the Navy and Marines have made special training mandatory. In just one weekend in September, the Navy lost four men in sport bike accidents.

As I have noted before in my blog, you can go out and purchase a motorcycle from a showroom floor without even having a motorcycle license to buy it or without having any special training. Some of the Ninja bikes will attain speeds of almost 200 mph. In the last 12 months, 50 of 58 sailors and marines killed on motorcycles were operating on such said sports bikes which are much faster than their cruiser counterparts. The Army also lost 36 soldiers on sport bike accidents in the same time period.

In just the last month in our law practice, which specializes in catastrophic personal injury accidents with an emphasis on motorcycle accidents, we noticed a tremendous amount of accidents with people under age 30 who are first time purchasers and have limited experience riding motorcycles. According to Tracy Martin who runs a private riding program aimed at high performance motorcycles, Air Force safety officials predict the military person most likely to die next is a male under the age of 25, working in maintenance, who has a sport bike and owns it less than a month. A direct correlation with those individuals represented by our law firm over the past 25 years. (New York Times article)

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October 24, 2008

UNITED STATES SUPREME COURT TO HEAR IMPORTANT PREEMPTION CASE ON NOVEMBER 3, 2008; COURT’S DECISION WILL DETERMINE WHETHER PATIENTS CAN SUE A DRUGMAKER THROUGH STATE LAW WHEN A PRODUCT HAS ALREADY BEEN APPROVED BY THE FOOD AND DRUG ADMINISTRATION (FDA)

A PHILADELPHIA PRODUCTS LIABILITY LAWYER SAYS THAT THE PUBLIC WILL PAY A PRICE

On November 3, 2008, the pharmaceutical giant Wyeth will take its case to the United States Supreme Court to argue that FDA approval of a drug supercedes state law challenging safety, efficacy and labeling. The drugmaker and the FDA will argue that preemption by maintaining the FDA’s actions are the final word on safety and effectiveness. This Court decision is extremely important and being closely watched by drug manufacturers and plaintiffs’ attorneys on behalf of their affected clients because the ruling will determine whether patients can sue drugmakers through state law when a product has already been approved by the FDA. In a press release, the drugmaker Wyeth argued that preemption protects everyone; “The Constitutional preemption is not new; the patients and physicians need to be able to rely on a single Federal standard and guidelines with the risks, benefits and uses of medicines - the FDA-approved labeling, and upholding preemption will leave America’s courthouse doors open to injured patients.”

This case stems from an instance where Vermont musician Diana Levine was given a Wyeth nausea medication called Phenergan during a visit to a hospital emergency room. However, the drug was administered improperly, causing her to lose her right arm below the elbow. She successfully argued that even though the labeling complied with the FDA requirements, the adequacy of the warning still wasn’t established for a particular method of administering the drug. She further contended that Wyeth wasn’t prevented from adding or strengthening the warning on the label even though the FDA rejected a proposed change. In the lower courts, Levine was awarded more than $6 million dollars. In spite of appeals, the Vermont Supreme Court sided with her. But Wyeth appealed again. No surprise the White House backs Wyeth on their preemption position. (New York Times article)

This case has been referred to as the mother of all preemption cases. If the Court accepts the position set forth by Wyeth and the FDA, the result will be an unprecedented elimination of remedies available to consumers injured by drugs. Many large corporations supported by the Bush administration have vigorously pursued the preemption argument to block the roadways to courts and prevent many injured plaintiffs from full ability to exercise their Constitutional rights. Preemption is a legal doctrine based on the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution which states that when Federal and State law are at odds, Federal law will take precedent. Its application to state tort litigation represents a radical extension of its original meaning.

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October 23, 2008

I AM A GREEDY TRIAL LAWYER

I have been a lawyer since 1979, aggressively protecting the rights of catastrophically injured individuals. Yes, I am a greedy trial lawyer. I am greedy for justice. As I listen to politicians, including presidential candidates, conveniently noting that lawyers are like bottom feeders or the “scum of the earth” or where I hear ignorant people telling me that trial lawyers are greedy, I can only think to myself that had it not been for trial lawyers, the greed of corporate America and Wall Street would certainly doom us all. When one thinks of greed, we think intuitively that greed is bad. We think of a self-serving, selfish individual who cares about nothing but accumulating wealth. Until lately, we did not hear much about greedy banks, greedy insurance companies or greedy Wall Street investment firms. What we did hear about most is greedy trial lawyers. Today the individual taxpayers are left holding the bag for the most massive bailout of greed in the history of developed nations. It is only when we feel the pain individually that we have the tendency to catagorize something or someone as greedy. Anyone living in today’s world knows that trial lawyers have been under attack and many of the rules applicable to injured and innocent victims have been changed or legislated away to give big corporations more and more power. The most contentious area of tort reform, and the area in which tort reform advocates focus, is on personal injury and the greed of the trial lawyer.

I am fortunate to live and practice law in the United States where juries decide cases and where compensatory and punitive damages are available to injured plaintiffs and to assist in policing the system of corporate greed. Tort reform has become a contentious political issue particularly because of the alleged high cost of compensating injured victims. It is my feeling that lawyers are the silent policemen of society. We protect the hopes and the value of hope of innocent victims. How do you know if your household products or automobiles are defective and could be causing a potential injury to you or your family? How do you know if your medicines are doing more harm than good? How do you know if the toys you purchase are safe for your children? Under current law, many defective and hazardous products remain on store shelves and in medicine cabinets and are in the houses of millions of Americans and you never know they are dangerous. Government and big corporations get away with keeping this information from us. They seal public records in court cases and try to keep everything a secret, even when victims are successful in holding corporations accountable for defective and hazardous products. They are forced to enter into secrecy agreements which prevent them from informing other consumers of the injuries they defend. The practice of secrecy in tort reform is an example of how corporations can legally put profits over people. Politicians claim that lawsuit abuse destroys jobs, forces doctors out of business, and forces companies into bankruptcy. They want to deprive innocent and injured clients of the hope of the judicial system and the access to the courts dictated by the founding fathers of the United States Constitution. Corporations have and will continue to place profits over safety unless policed by trial lawyers and the court system.

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October 22, 2008

THE DECLINING QUALITY OF CARE AT NURSING HOMES AND INSURANCE CRISIS - THE CRISIS THAT IS CURRENTLY EMBODYING MANY NURSING HOMES AND THEIR QUALITY OF CARE - AN AFFECTED NURSING HOME ABUSE LAWYER SPEAKS OUT

My mother-in-law is 92 years old and is currently a resident of a prominent assisted living facility. For the past year, many of the residents and their families have made numerous complaints about the inadequacy of the quality of care delivered in the facility. As I visited the nursing home facility over the past year, it was not uncommon to learn of the deaths of individuals who I had just seen appearing in healthy condition just weeks earlier. Apparently with the decline in the economy, the care at the nursing home had declined to less than acceptable. Many inhabitants and families were noticeably angry and lodging complaints to the young administrator who had a background, unbelievably and more surprisingly, in physical education. The number of clinical registered nurses at the facility was reduced and replaced with practical day nurses who often do not have proper or adequate training. Budgets for nursing supplies, resident activities, and other services also have decreased. When questioned about the apparent decreased standards and conditions, we were told that the company was working to improve the situation, but frankly, this has just been plain old lipservice. The company even started to re-work financial arrangements quietly with many of the residents to prevent growing attrition.

The New York Times recently conducted an analysis of nursing homes and collected data by government agencies from 2000 to 2006. The analysis noted that when nursing homes are acquired by large private investors, they cut expenses and staff (sometimes below minimum legal requirements). According to the New York Times article published on September 23, 2007, it is noted that the typical nursing home acquired by a large investment company scored worse than national rates in 12 out of 14 indicators that regulators use to track elements of long term residents. Before these homes were acquired by private investors, many of these homes scored at or above national averages in similar measurements. The article notes that private investment companies have made it very difficult for plaintiffs who have suffered harm to succeed in court and for regulators to levy chainwide fines due to the creation of complex corporate structures that have obscured who controls the nursing homes. (New York Times article)

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October 21, 2008

YOUR BABY’S CRIB MAY BE A DEATH TRAP

Children’s product maker, Delta Enterprise Corporation, recalls 1.59 million cribs linked to infant deaths according to an article published in the Wall Street Journal on October 21, 2008. A spokesman for Delta Enterprise Corporation, a New York based company, stated that they are recalling 1.59 million cribs and the recall stems from two different types of problematic hardware used on the cribs sold from 1995 through 2005. The hardware, which includes safety pegs for one set of cribs and spring pegs for another, can create a hazard if not properly installed. The drop side of the cribs can fall and disengage creating a gap that can entrap and suffocate infants. The recall by Delta is the biggest in a series of crib investigations and recalls urged by The Consumer Product Safety Commission. In mid-September, the agency also announced a recall of 600,000 Simplicity Inc. drop side cribs involving hardware problems. A month earlier, 900,000 Simplicity convertible bassinets were recalled after Federal regulators linked the products to infant deaths from strangulation. In that case, metal bars were spaced too far apart to prevent infants from slipping through. The company has set up a website at www.cribrecallcenter.com for consumers. The site should be online by Tuesday, October 21st. Consumers may also call 1-800-876-5304. The Consumer Product Safety Commission will announce details of the recall on October 21, 2008. For more information on recalls, please see my blog article dated September 30, 2008.

Products can be purchased at many retail stores, wholesalers, supermarkets or even speciality outlets and they are all manufactured with the 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 in Pennsylvania, consumers are often able to recover monetary damages stemming from or relating to injuries. Under Pennsylvania law, products must meet certain consumer safety requirements when being used in a lawful and normal manner.

The experienced product liability lawyers at Reiff and Bily specialize in severe and catastrophic injuries caused by defective products. We have almost thirty years of experience handling product liability cases throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and in other states across the nation. We are available to answer any of your questions regarding product liability. We offer no obligation and confidential evaluations by telephone 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.

October 20, 2008

NINTH FATAL HELICOPTER CRASH OF THE YEAR OCCURS PROMPTING THE NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD TO CALL FOR AN INVESTIGATION INTO THE INCREASE OF MEDICAL HELICOPTER CRASHES

CATASTROPHIC INJURY ATTORNEY, JEFFREY REIFF, WEIGHS IN

Another four people, including a 13 month old girl, died when a medical rescue helicopter crashed in Illinois early last week. The helicopter was headed for Children’s Hospital in Chicago. Authorities state that there was no distress call made from the pilots and believe that the helicopter may have hit a radio wire before it crashed. (news article)

Just prior to this, on September 30, 2008, a helicopter operated by the Maryland State Police crashed killing four people. An investigation revealed that the rescue helicopter was not equipped with a terrain awareness system that could have warned the pilot that he was flying dangerously close to a grove of trees, according the National Transportation Safety Board. (news article)

In the last 30 years of practicing catastrophic injury law, we are all too familiar with evacuations and rescues by helicopters from serious accidents. Many of our clients have recollected that the helicopter rides have been scarier than the actual accident. In the case of the Maryland accident, according to news sources, Stephanie Younger, the mother of one of the crash victims that died, stated that her teenage daughter was well enough to call her on her cell phone after the car accident and had no obvious injuries, just pains in her chest. It should be noted that the weather at the time of the crash was rain and fog, and the helicopter was flying at night. Mrs. Younger was quoted as asking “If the weather is already bad, why would you put a child by herself and without a parent in a helicopter?” On June 8th another helicopter crash in Texas killed a patient and three crew members.

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October 17, 2008

LONG TERM CARE INSURANCE - A CRISIS ON THE HORIZON

Long term care insurance refers to the insurance for care taking and services beyond medical care and is used by people who have a disability or chronic illness or plainly just in their “golden years”. People are living longer these days and, unfortunately, normal health insurance policies and Medicare do not pay for long term care expenses. Long term care insurance typically covers the cost of health in your home with daily activities like bathing, dressing, eating, cleaning, adult daycare, visiting nurses, care in a nursing home or assisted living programs and services that are provided in a special residential setting other than in your home which services may include meals, health monitoring and help with daily activities.

Approximately ten years ago, a persuasive insurance agent convinced me that it was necessary to purchase long term care insurance for myself, as well as my aging parents. As any individual who has reviewed a newspaper within the past month can determine, many of the insurance companies in America are in deep financial crisis. It appears that there is much more trouble on the horizon for the beleaguered insurance industry. Recently, benefits for some 164,000 long term care policyholders at Conseco Senior Health Insurance Company may be in danger as they are moved to an independent trust. For more information on this, please see my blog article dated October 13, 2008.

Since 1979, I have exclusively devoted my legal practice to handling catastrophic injury and insurance claims cases. In the process, I have developed a fairly intimate knowledge of the insurance industry as I have worked with many experts including but not limited to actuaries, economists, lobbyists, product developers and insurance industry executives. As a financial investor, I have carefully studied trends and balance sheets of insurance companies. I have even been asked to participate in the start up of a few insurance companies. The field of long term care insurance is a fairly young industry and has been largely in the premium collection mode (to date) from the baby boomers who are now aging or have parents who are entering the “golden years” period of life. The financial weakness of the markets is starting to reveal its effect on even the major insurance industry players as they face declining sales and an aging population. Claims are being denied or delayed and premiums being increased in a more than harsh fashion in what this writer perceives as an attempt to negate or cancel policies for non-payment.

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October 16, 2008

SPECULATING ABOUT THE FINANCIAL HEALTH OF INSURANCE COMPANIES OTHER THAN AIG IN PENNSYLVANIA AND HOW IT AFFECTS CLAIMANTS

As a Pennsylvania insurance claims attorney, with a 30 year history of representing catastrophically injured plaintiffs and disputes against insurance carriers solely on a contingent fee basis (we don’t get paid until we win), obviously the financial concerns of the insurance companies and their ability to pay claims is on the front burner in our law firm. In the past few weeks, AIG has been front and center in the headlines. This was followed by an incident with Conseco which was written about in my blog of October 13, 2008.

On October 1, 2008, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid emerged from a luncheon on Capitol Hill and after speaking briefly to reporters about the financial crisis, mentioned that another insurance company was in danger of following AIG into failure. He mentioned “one of the individuals in the caucus today talked about a major insurance company, with a name that everyone knows, that’s on the verge of going bankrupt.” The Senator stopped short of identifying the insurance company. However, the stock market acting in a nervous fashion revealed that shares of Prudential, Hartford Financial Services and MetLife decreased in value on the following days and have been struggling to recover. The rumor mill continues to circulate rumors and facts, non-facts and supposed facts about various individual companies, solvency of insurance companies, and general doom and gloom predictions. Shares of stock in insurance companies fluctuated wildly on the New York Stock Exchange. Prudential Financial warned last week that it would miss third quarter forecasts due to a series of hefty charges on negative results of investments. MetLife recently raised an additional $2 billion dollars in capital by selling 75 million shares at a discount, while Hartford Insurance Company received a $2.5 billion capital injection from German financial services company, Allianz. To make matters worse, many insureds can no longer afford rising rates.

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October 15, 2008

THE DISHONEST CLIENT - A LAWYER’S BIGGEST NIGHTMARE

Approximately three weeks ago, I was contacted by clients who allegedly sustained catastrophic injuries. When I initially went to meet the clients, he and his wife provided me with convincingly and tearful recollections of a catastrophic accident in which they were allegedly passengers in a commercial transportation vehicle operated by another commercial vendor that was allegedly struck broadside, rolled over, and ejected the passengers, the result being multiple internal injuries, broken bones, scarring and extensive hospitalization. The initial meeting was quite emotional as the alleged clients were tearful, with other family members attempting to calm them down. The next day I went to my office and met with our staff and investigators and over the process of the next 24 hours learned that these clients were, in fact, imposters attempting to secure financial benefits for themselves by attempting to defraud our office, financial institutions, and potentially an insurance carrier. As we continued to investigate the matter, we also learned that these individuals had contacted other law firms in the same manner.

At the Philadelphia personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily, we are committed to representing honest clients and cautiously practice law with the motto that today’s best client can be tomorrow’s worst enemy. The dangers posed to lawyers and law firms representing dishonest clients are clear. Often, we read news reports or allegations whereupon law firms are cited for aiding and abetting the dishonest clients’ fraud or misconduct therefore harming other innocent third parties. Not surprisingly, the Insurance Information Institute has estimated that insurance fraud accounts for 10% of property/casualty insurance industry’s incurred loss and loss adjustment expenses of about $30 billion dollars a year. Common frauds include padding or inflating actual claims, misrepresenting facts on insurance applications, submitting claims for injuries or damages that never occurred, and staging accidents.

The National Insurance Crime Bureau has identified ten cities with the highest numbers of staged auto accidents. One of the many types of staged accidents involves a vehicle that is positioned in front of an unsuspecting motorist with a sudden application of brakes causing a rear-end crash.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is the number 5 city in the United States with the highest rate of automobile insurance fraud. Just as many alleged clients attempt to commit fraud, unfortunately, so too is the case with many lawyers or healthcare providers. In any profession, there is occasionally a member who is dishonest. Although not all professions or industries protect victims of their dishonest members, the legal profession has generally offered financial protection to members of the public whose money has been stolen by their lawyer or whose lawyer has committed a fraud.

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October 14, 2008

ANOTHER PREVENTABLE BUS ACCIDENT KILLS INNOCENT VICTIMS - DEJA VU

PHILADELPHIA BUS ACCIDENT LAWYER, JEFFREY REIFF, SPEAKS OUT!

Eight people were killed and another 45 injured on Sunday, October 5, 2008 when a charter bus bound for a casino flipped over and rolled off into a ditch on a two lane highway north of Sacramento, California. Among the injured was the bus driver, Quintin Watts, 52 years old, who was hospitalized in critical condition and was also arrested the following Monday, October 6, 2008 on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs. According to news sources, Robert Kays, a spokesman for the California Highway Patrol noted that the driver was observed to be operating the vehicle in an erratic fashion prior to the collision. Mr. Kays also noted that California records revealed that the driver DID NOT have a valid certificate to transport passengers in a chartered vehicle. The Associated Press, quoting the mother of the driver on October 6th, stated that he had wrestled with drug and alcohol problems and had been jailed several times on drug charges and smashed his car into a tree a few years ago. In addition, the news agency stated that records showed that the driver had been cited for speeding and other violations that resulted in the loss of his driver’s license for nearly two years and he regained his driving privileges in January. Officials also noted that the bus had an invalid Texas license plate and an invalid registration serial number and was operated by Cobb Transportation, whose owner, Daniel E. Cobb, Sr., was among those killed. According to witnesses, the bus drifted into the oncoming lane of traffic soon before the crash and stayed there for approximately one half mile before it began swerving and over corrected at least three times when it finally rolled over, ejecting some passengers before landing in a ditch. (news article)

I have written a number of articles or blogs spotlighting the lack of proper safety regulation and concern for passengers. Notably bus passenger usage is on the increase in the United States and so too are the number of bus accidents that are causing personal injury and death. Surprisingly, most of these accidents are preventable. I am outraged when I review the facts of an accident such as the one that took place in California this week. Common carriers, which include but are not limited to commercial bus companies, owe a extraordinarily high duty of care to their fare-paying passengers. Such safety sensitive jobs or occupations mandate testing for drugs, alcohol, sleep disorders as well as careful background checks of operators. Fatalities from accidents such as above are on the rise. As more and more accidents are occurring, it is important that the bus companies, drivers and other employees be held accountable for negligence and gross negligence which contributes to such bus accidents. It is equally as important for the State and Federal government agencies to implement tighter safety standards and regulations for common carriers and the manufacturers of buses that transport precious cargo.

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October 13, 2008

YET ANOTHER TROUBLED INSURANCE CARRIER IS PLANNING TO MOVE ITS POLICIES INTO AN INDEPENDENT TRUST - HOW THIS WILL AFFECT PENNSYLVANIA POLICYHOLDERS

PHILADELPHIA INSURANCE CLAIMS LAWYER, JEFFREY REIFF, SPEAKS OUT

Over the past few weeks, many Americans learned about the AIG insurance crisis and the lawyers and staff at the Pennsylvania insurance claims law firm of Reiff and Bily received many phone calls from insurance agents, clients and other concerned Pennsylvania citizens. It appears that there is more trouble on the horizon for the beleaguered insurance industry and potentially a number of Pennsylvania citizens may be affected. According to a recent article in Investment News, the benefits of some 164,000 long term care policyholders at Conseco Senior Health Insurance Company may be in danger as they are moved to an independent trust. Conseco, an Indiana-based insurance company, without notice to policyholders decided to move 144,000 long term care policies in a trust that may have devastating consequences for senior care citizens. Earlier this year, the Pennsylvania Insurance Department found that Conseco had violated insurance claims handling practices and fined the company $32.3 million dollars. Acting Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner, Joel Ario, defined the bulk of the fines as “restitution to consumers who were harmed”. Conseco reported a second quarter loss of $487.1 million dollars or $2.64 at diluted share. Conseco also disclosed recently that it held $103 million in securities with American International Group and Lehman Brothers Holdings, both in New York and Washington Mutual in Seattle. (Investment News article)

Bensalem, Pennsylvania-based Conseco Senior is a subsidiary of Conseco Inc. of Carmel, Indiana and according to industry critics is a victim of its own underwriting, signing on more policyholders than it could afford, leading to the creation of the trust. According to the Investment News article written by Darla Mercado, Frank Darras, managing partner of Shernoff Bidart Darras & Echeverria LLP of Claremont, California, stated “This product is oversold, underpriced and poorly performing because they underwrote everybody. These policyholders will either lapse on their payments or the unhealthy people will be so ill that there won’t be enough premiums to keep the trust going.” A spike in premium rates could force healthy policyholders to terminate their LTC insurance with Conseco Senior leaving the unhealthy with coverage that is so costly that the premiums approach the cost of the claim for each contract, according to Philip J. Bieluch an Avon, Connecticut insurance consultant at Insurance Strategies Consulting LLC.

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October 10, 2008

ALLSTATE INSURANCE COMPANY AND POSIT SCIENCE IS PROVIDING 100,000 PENNSYLVANIA CUSTOMERS AGE 50 T0 75 WITH SPECIALIZED COMPUTER GAMES TO TEST ITS HYPOTHESIS THAT GAMERS HAVE BETTER REFLEXES AND HENCE MAKE SAFER DRIVERS

THE RESULT: GAMERS MAY BE OFFERED REDUCED INSURANCE RATES

As a Philadelphia personal injury attorney, there is probably not a week that goes by that I am not involved in an insurance claim situation with Allstate Insurance Company. I recently came across a story that intrigued me.

Allstate, the company that allegedly puts you in “good hands” apparently believes that people who play computer games have “good hands” and reflexes as well and is testing a program in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania whereupon it may offer reduced insurance rates to individuals who play computer games. Apparently Allstate Insurance Company has hypothesized that gamers have improved mental agility over non-gamers and as a result have improved driving response times. Go to www.allstate.com to view a demonstration of the “InSight” software. This in turn could lead to better safety records which could result in fewer insurance claims that Allstate would need to pay. According to the report (issued by Allstate on October 1, 2008), for the time being, Allstate is simply testing its hypothesis in older gamers. In its pilot program called “InSight”, Allstate is providing 100,000 Pennsylvania customers age 50 to 75 with specialized computer games with a games developer monitoring the total number of hours that drivers play. In true experimental fashion, the groups accident’s rates will then be compared to a control group. Tom Warden, an Assistant Vice President of Allstate, states that people in their 50's and 60's have the lowest accident rates of all drivers, but the rate shoots up again in their mid-60's. Mr. Warden hopes that the gaming experiment will improve older drivers brain fitness and notes that Allstate recommends at least 10 hours of game playing/training. The games being tested in the pilot program are something along the lines of a pop cap games title or something you would find on X box live arcade, Playstation network or Wii Ware. Allstate is running the program with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania this year, but it plans to decide in 2009 whether to roll it out to other states.

At the Philadelphia personal injury firm of Reiff and Bily, we salute the efforts of Allstate to improve driver safety and save their insureds money in these difficult economic times.

October 9, 2008

13 CHILD BOOSTER SEATS RECEIVE A POOR RATING ACCORDING TO REVIEW BY THE INSURANCE INDUSTRY AND RESEARCHERS - PHILADELPHIA DEFECTIVE CHILD SEAT ATTORNEY, JEFFREY REIFF, WEIGHS IN

The Virginia based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute determined that 13 booster seats failed to properly position and protect children during a crash.

The Institute which conducts crash studies of new vehicles did not recommend the following seats:

Compass B505
Compass B510
Cosco/Dorel Traveler
Evenflo Big Kid Confidence
Safety Angel Ride Ryte
Cosco/Dorel Alpha Omega
Cosco/Dorel (Eddie Bauer) Summit
Cosco Highback Booster
Dorel/Safety 1st (Eddie Bauer) Prospect
Evenflo Chase Comfort Touch
Evenflo Generations
Graco CarGo Zephyr
Safety 1st/Dorel Intera

IIHS President, Adrian Lund, said that the 13 boosters “may increase restraint use by making children more comfortable but they don’t position belts for optimal protection”. Evenflo released a statement stating that it conducts extensive tests and that IIHS study was “misleading as it fails to consider the real world use and performance of seats tested”. Evenflo further remarked that they had sold more than 4 million units of the seats studied by the Institute and “we are not aware of a single incident in which a child was injured as the result of improper fit”. Other child seat manufacturers noted that their products meet or exceeded Federal regulations. Dorel Juvenile Group stated “it welcomes the opportunity to review the evaluation conducted by the IIHS”. Graco Children’s Products stated in a statement that “safety is always a top priority and nothing is more important than the well being of the children that use their products”.

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October 8, 2008

HOLIDAY INN IN LANCASTER COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA DOESN’T PLAY BY THE RULES - ARE THEY PUTTING THEIR CUSTOMERS AT RISK?

PENNSYLVANIA HOTEL LIABILITY LAWYER, PENNSYLVANIA HOTEL LIABILITY LAWYER, JEFFREY REIFF, WEIGHS IN

According to a story published on September 28, 2008 by the Sunday News in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, inspectors for the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, responding to consumer complaints at the Holiday Inn in Lancaster County, were surprised when they found a laundry list of offenses. According to the article, when the hotel’s walk-in refrigerator failed, hotel employees moved the contents to a guest room for cooling. The room’s air conditioner was turned all the way down to 65 degrees, 25 degrees higher than the maximum temperature allowed by Pennsylvania State Health guidelines. On the same day of the food inspection, the Pennsylvania Bureau of Liquor Control Enforcement Officers searched the hotel and found that it was selling liquor without a license and had been doing so for over a year when the ownership changed hands and new owners never sought to renew the liquor license. It is reported that Treasury officials claim that the hotel had failed to pay taxes since July 21st and it is impossible to determine how much the hotel owes due to the fact that the figures come from the hotel’s monthly reports which are not accurate or complete either (according to the report). According to records, the State Department of Revenue placed a lien on the property for $29,259.28 in unpaid sales taxes for November and December 2007. Employees of the hotel paint and even grimmer picture for this Lancaster County Holiday Inn. They state that paychecks have been late, have been bounced and they have been paying insurance premiums out of their paychecks, yet, this hotel is not actually carrying insurance, according to reports.

One employee found this out the hard way when he went in for surgery and was told he did not have insurance, even though he had been paying for it through his employer. It was further reported that housekeeping employees have been instructed to rinse out and reuse disposable supplies in guest rooms. This included refilling used shampoo bottles and rinsing out and reusing trash bags. It was further reported that utilities and cable have been shut off at the hotel for failure to pay bills and that the building has failed fire code inspections as well.

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October 7, 2008

94% OF NURSING HOMES WERE CITED FOR VIOLATIONS OF FEDERAL HEALTH AND SAFETY STANDARDS LAST YEAR - FOR PROFIT HOMES MORE LIKELY TO HAVE PROBLEMS THAN OTHER TYPES OF NURSING HOMES CLAIM FEDERAL INVESTIGATORS

PHILADELPHIA NURSING HOME ABUSE ATTORNEY, JEFFREY REIFF, WEIGHS IN

According to a study referred to by Robert Pear in the New York Times on Monday, September 29, 2008, more than 90% of nursing homes were cited for violations of Federal Health and Safety standards last year, and for profit homes more likely have problems than other types of nursing homes, Federal investigators stated in a report issued Monday, September 29, 2008. According to the article, about 17% of nursing homes had deficiencies that caused “actual harm or immediate jeopardy” to patients according to a report by Dr. Daniel R. Levinson, the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services. (New York Times article).

Problems included bed sores, medication mixups, poor nutrition and abuse and neglect of patients. Inspectors received 37,150 complaints about conditions in nursing homes last year and this substantiated 39% of them the report said. About 1/5 of the complaints verified by Federal and State authorities involved the abuse or neglect of patients.

About 2/3 of nursing homes are owned by for profit companies, while 27% are owned by non-profit organizations and 6% by government entities according to the report. The Inspector General noted that 94% of for profit nursing homes were cited for deficiencies last year, compared with 88% of non-profit homes and 91% of government homes.

“For profit nursing homes have a higher average number of deficiencies than other types of nursing homes,” Mr. Levinson said. “In 2007, for profit nursing homes averages 7.6% deficiencies per home, while non-profit and government homes averaged 5.7 and 6.3% respectively”. On Monday, Mr. Levinson issued a compliance guide for nursing homes that says some homes have “systematically failed to provide staff in sufficient numbers with appropriate clinical expertise to serve their residents”.

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October 6, 2008

A MAN PASSES GAS AND FANNED IT TOWARDS A POLICEMAN AND IS CHARGED WITH BATTERY - A CASE OF FIRST IMPRESSION FOR ONE PHILADELPHIA PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER

I am always amazed when I read the news and come across a case of first impression. In this case, according to news sources from the Associated Press, a West Virginia man who police say passed gas and fanned it towards the patrolman was charged with battery on a police officer. Many enjoy a good “fart” joke - but this is not a joke.

According to the newspaper article, Jose Cruz, 34, of Clarksburg, West Virginia, was pulled over Tuesday night for driving without headlights, police said according to the complaint. Police stated that Mr. Cruz smelled of alcohol and had slurred speech and failed three field sobriety tests before he was handcuffed and taken to the police station for a breathalyser test. As Patrolman T. E. Parsons prepared the breathalyser machine, Cruz scooted his chair towards Parsons, lifted his leg and “passed gas loudly”, according to the criminal complaint. Cruz, according to the complaint, then fanned his odorous gas towards the officer. Patrolman Parsons alleged in his complaint that the gas was very odorous and created contact in an insulting and provoking nature. The defendant Cruz acknowledged passing the gas but claimed in his defense that he did not move the chair towards the police officer nor aimed his gas towards the patrolman. He stated he had an upset stomach at the time but the police denied his request to go to the bathroom when he first arrived at the station. “I couldn’t hold it anymore”, he said. Cruz commented, this is ridiculous. I could be facing time. I guess the moral of the story in our continuing efforts to inform and advise our clients is to hold it in if you are near a police officer or you too could be potentially arrested for a criminal offense. (news article)

This informational bit of legal knowledge is “passed” on to you by the Philadelphia personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily. We have been zealously representing injured clients for almost 30 years. If you or a loved one has suffered an injury, please contact us at 1-800-421-9595 or visit our website at www.reiffandbily.com.

October 3, 2008

CELL PHONE USAGE BY OPERATOR CAUSES TWO MAJOR CATASTROPHIC INCIDENTS IN THE UNITED STATES IN SEPTEMBER 2008

PHILADELPHIA CATASTROPHIC INJURY LAWYER CALLS FOR MORE REGULATIONS AND OVERSIGHT BY GOVERNMENT AUTHORITY AS THESE INCIDENTS BECOME MORE PREVALENT WITH SEVERE CONSEQUENCES

Just over a week following the catastrophic commuter rail collision in Los Angeles that killed 25 people involving the operator/engineer text messaging another preventable accident occurred in Ocala, Florida when a truck driver rear-ended a school bus on Tuesday, September 23rd, killing a 13 year old and injuring other students while he was on his cell phone just before impact. Pennsylvania personal injury lawyer, Jeffrey Reiff, has been an advocate of limiting cell phone usage by vehicle operators for many years.

A Florida highway patrol report indicates that Reinaldo A. Gonzales, age 30, of Orlando, Florida told investigators that he had been on the phone just before the 1991 Freight Liner he was operating slammed into the stopped school bus. The police report indicated driver distraction, careless driving, and possible faulty brakes as contributing factors of the crash on U.S. 301 south of Citra, Florida. Surprisingly, Gonzales, the operator, was not charged and not in police custody. Investigators were also investigating other factors that may have contributed to the crash, including Gonzales’ driving log to learn how long he had been behind the wheel and the Department of Transportation records indicating that his rig had been sidelined for 12 ½ hours before the crash for faulty brakes. An early report of the crash also revealed that Gonzales’ truck was inspected at a weigh station on Interstate 95 and was taken out of service for brake problems. The Florida Department of Transportation rules require that when a truck is taken out of service, the problem must be fixed before the vehicle is allowed to continue. Also, it is noteworthy that on April 12, 2007 transportation officials sidelined the Gonzales truck for having a broken headlight and having three tires with minimal tread, according to DOT records. Failing to fix a safety problem after a truck is taken out of service can relate to a $2,500 fine and loss of the driver’s commercial driver’s license. Witnesses at the scene of this accident said there was no indication that Gonzales tried to stop before crashing into the bus. Gonzales, who was the owner/operator of the rig, told another truck driver that he did not see the school bus. Gonzales had a history of additional DOT safety infractions since getting his license to drive commercial tractor/trailers in 2005 but none were serious enough to sideline him. (video)

Continue reading "CELL PHONE USAGE BY OPERATOR CAUSES TWO MAJOR CATASTROPHIC INCIDENTS IN THE UNITED STATES IN SEPTEMBER 2008" »

October 2, 2008

EMOTIONAL DISTRESS DAMAGES OKAYED IN PRODUCTS LIABILITY CASES SAYS THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE SUPERIOR COURT IN A CASE OF FIRST IMPRESSION

Physically unharmed plaintiffs may still collect emotional distress damages in strict product liability cases the Pennsylvania Superior has ruled in a case of first impression. A three judge panel voted 2 to 1, with Judge Orie Melvin concurring and dissenting, to uphold a $4.5 million dollar jury verdict in favor of two people, one of whom was killed and the other was seriously injured by a flying fire hose and to three close relatives who witnessed the accident but sustained no physical injury. Defendants argued that Pennsylvania law does not recognize awards for emotional distress under a theory of strict liability and also argued that under Pennsylvania law negligent concepts are “distinct from the product liability doctrine”.

A majority in Schmidt v. Boardman, led by Judge Cheryl Allan, called those arguments meritless. “We conclude that in Pennsylvania, a bystander-plaintiff who witnesses injury to a close relative can recover emotional distress damages when the injured person’s underlying cause of action is based on strict product liability rather than negligence” wrote Judge Cheryl Allan. Judge Allan was joined by John T. Bender. Attorney Arnd N. von Waldow of Reed, Smith in Pittsburgh, who was handling the appeal for defendant-manufacturer, said that he and his clients were planning to appeal the ruling and that this decision will not be the last word. For information on this case and the ruling, please see Schmidt v. Boardman Company, 2008 PA Super 203 (Pa.Super.CT. 9/2/2008). (opinion)

Continue reading "EMOTIONAL DISTRESS DAMAGES OKAYED IN PRODUCTS LIABILITY CASES SAYS THE PENNSYLVANIA STATE SUPERIOR COURT IN A CASE OF FIRST IMPRESSION" »

September 30, 2008

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)

Continue reading "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" »

September 30, 2008

FALLING ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL NOT JUST LIMITED TO TRUCK DRIVERS, BUS DRIVERS OR OTHER COMMON CARRIERS - SURPRISINGLY AND SHOCKINGLY - 2 AIRLINE PILOTS WERE SUSPENDED FROM SERVICE DUE TO RECKLESS AND CARELESS OPERATION OF A COMMERCIAL PASSENGER AIRCRAFT

PA PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY, JEFFREY REIFF, SPEAKS OUT ABOUT THIS BELIEVE IT OR NOT STORY

According to a report issued by the Associated Press on September 24, 2008, two pilots for Hawaii’s Go! Airlines, who slept through their flight’s landing procedure, were suspended for careless and reckless operation of an aircraft according to the Federal Aviation Administration on Tuesday, September 23rd. Captain Scott Oltman, 54, was cited for failing to maintain radio communications and had his license suspended for 60 days and First Officer Dillon Shepley, 24, was suspended for 45 days. No action was taken against Go! Airlines because accordingly, “they did nothing wrong and provided the pilots with a 15 hour break before their shift, nearly double what the FAA requires”. The National Transportation Safety Board had determined that the two pilots fell asleep on a February 13th flight from Honolulu to Hilo. Captain Scott Oltman was later diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea which causes people to stop breathing repeatedly, preventing a restful night of sleep. It is still unclear how both pilots fell asleep on a brief morning flight which was carrying 40 passengers. No problems were found after examining the aircraft’s pressurization and carbon monoxide level. The pilots failed to respond to nearly a dozen calls from air traffic controllers over a span of 17 minutes. In recordings obtained by the Associated Press, the controller was heard repeatedly trying to contact the pilots and talks to the pilot on another Go! flight in hopes of reaching Flight 1002. According to the AP report, finally after 44 minutes into what is normally a 45 minute flight, the controller was able to establish radio contact with the pilots. By that time, the plane had passed the airport at Hilo by 15 miles. The controller ordered the flight crew to return. (news article)

As I review this article, I am astounded, however not really so, as I think about the many cases we have handled involving commercial vehicles, including bus drivers and truck drivers and railroad workers where sleep apnea of “falling asleep at the wheel” was diagnosed as a major cause of fatal accidents. As noted in my September 5, 2008 blog, Federal regulations in the near future will mandate truck and bus drivers in safety sensitive positions to be tested for sleep disorders to decrease crash rates and fatalities. It was determined that many truck drivers, bus drivers and railroad workers suffered from a disorder known as obstructive sleep apnea, which was diagnosed as a major cause of excessive daytime sleepiness, leading people to fall asleep while sitting, reading and even driving. According to yearly statistics, more than 13,000 fatalities and 70,000 injuries were directly caused by drowsy driving. Surprisingly, 53% of Americans report driving while drowsy and another 19% have reported nodding off while behind the wheel, and another 23% of American drivers claim to personally know of someone who has crashed due to drowsy driving.

Continue reading "FALLING ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL NOT JUST LIMITED TO TRUCK DRIVERS, BUS DRIVERS OR OTHER COMMON CARRIERS - SURPRISINGLY AND SHOCKINGLY - 2 AIRLINE PILOTS WERE SUSPENDED FROM SERVICE DUE TO RECKLESS AND CARELESS OPERATION OF A COMMERCIAL PASSENGER AIRCRAFT" »

September 26, 2008

AIG UPDATE - UPDATE FOR CONCERNED PENNSYLVANIA INSUREDS AND CLAIMANTS

PENNSYLVANIA INSURANCE CLAIMS AND PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER, JEFFREY REIFF, REITERATES HIS ADVICE TO CLIENTS - REMAIN CALM - DO NOT PANIC - THE STATE INSURANCE COMMISSION HAS THE SITUATION UNDER CONTROL WITH AIG

Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner, Joel Ario, informed AIG Policyholders in Pennsylvania that the Insurance Commission’s most recent examination of AIG Companies indicate that they are financially sound and their insurance policies are safe. “Making sure that insurance companies are financially stable is a top priority with the Rendell administration”, stated Commissioner Ario. Ario further stated “I want to insure Pennsylvania policyholders that AIG Insurance Companies doing business in our Commonwealth are solid and have the assets needed to pay present and projected claims”.

As my previous blogs have noted, we have received calls of concern from AIG insureds or from plaintiffs who have claims against AIG insureds and we have told them not to panic, that all will be fine.

While it is understandable that many consumers are concerned and have questions concerning their claims or their policies, the state has financial safeguards in place as outlined in my blog of September 22, 2008. On a national level, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) has established a working group to oversee AIG’s insurance interests and coordinate with federal regulators as needed. Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner, Ario, serves as a Vice Chairman of this Committee.

Continue reading "AIG UPDATE - UPDATE FOR CONCERNED PENNSYLVANIA INSUREDS AND CLAIMANTS" »

September 25, 2008

YET ANOTHER HIT AND RUN ACCIDENT BY A DRUNK DRIVER CLAIMS THE LIFE OF EAGLES’ STAR JAMAAL JACKSON’S BROTHER

Kamar Jackson, age 29, was killed in a hit and run accident last Saturday. The suspect, Carlos Rodriguez, turned himself in a day after the accident after the Jackson family pleaded for the driver to so. According to news sources, Rodriguez eventually admitted to being in a strip club and getting behind the wheel of his SUV while drunk. (news article)

On September 16th, I noted in my blog that Pennsylvania legislature Rep. David Reed was looking to change provisions in Pennsylvania law to close a loophole that some say actually encourages people who are under the influence to leave the scene of an accident, as was the case with Carlos Rodriguez.

The Philadelphia hit and run lawyers at the Philadelphia personal injury and hit and run accident law firm of Reiff and Bily salute Representative David Reed and all like-minded legislators who sponsor legislation that was heard in the State House Judiciary Committee earlier in September.

Continue reading "YET ANOTHER HIT AND RUN ACCIDENT BY A DRUNK DRIVER CLAIMS THE LIFE OF EAGLES’ STAR JAMAAL JACKSON’S BROTHER" »

September 24, 2008

PHILADELPHIA MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENT LAWYER, JEFFREY REIFF, OFFERS TIPS ON HOW TO REDUCE YOUR CHANCE OF INJURY OR DEATH WHILE OPERATING A MOTORCYCLE

Although many states define a motorcycle as a motor vehicle, motorcycles by their design offer many safety issues with the driver. Motorcycles offer very little protection to riders in the event of a crash or collision, often leading to severe injuries and fatalities. Many safety devices are available for purchase from motorcycle manufacturers or after market. It is important to consider such safety devices that (1) increase the visibility of motorcycles to other traffic such as activation of headlights; (2) installation of crash bars to help reduce lower leg injuries; and (3) the installation of ABS braking systems to enhance the motorcycle’s breaking performance in stopping situations. Most importantly is the knowledge that operating a motorcycle safely in traffic requires special skills and knowledge.

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania maintains a motorcycle safety program which teaches the operator the basic skills necessary to operate a motorcycle. All Pennsylvania drivers should take advantage of the opportunity to read the motorcycle operator’s manual published by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, as well as take the Pennsylvania motorcycle safety program. Additionally, while riding the motorcycle, one should wear proper protective clothing and head gear, ride within your limits, obey the law and “share the road” with other highway users. You should always wear a helmet designed to meet DOT and State standards. Helmets with a label from Snell Memorial Foundation gives you an added assurance of quality. Make sure that the helmet fits snugly all the way around and has no obvious defects such as cracks, loose padding or frayed straps. Whatever helmet you choose to wear, make sure it is securely fastened on your head when you ride.

Since 1979 the Pennsylvania motorcycle accident lawyers and the Philadelphia personal injury lawyers at Reiff and Bily have represented many motorcyclists who have been seriously injured or killed in motorcycle accidents in Pennsylvania and throughout the country.

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September 23, 2008

THE MERCURY INSURANCE GROUP PROMULGATES FIVE TIPS DESIGNED TO PROTECT YOUNG DRIVERS TO FOCUS ON SAFETY ALSO HELPS TO LOWER THE COST OF AUTO INSURANCE

A press release issued by Mercury Insurance Group on September 16, 2008 presents five excellent safety tips for parents faced with the challenge of choosing the first car for their teens. The suggestion from the Mercury Insurance Group focus on safety, which also helps to lower the cost of auto insurance. The personal injury and automotive safety and vehicle defect lawyers at the Pennsylvania personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily salute Mercury Insurance Company for their suggestions and promulgation of automobile safety.

According to the Mercury Insurance Group press release, new teens spend countless hours dreaming of owning their first car. A fast sports car conjures exciting images, while an SUV has ample room for all of their friends and both vehicles have one thing in common, neither is a good choice for teens.

Mercury suggests setting ground rules that may ease the polarized view points shared by parents and their teens.

Tip 1: Watch the speed. Driving fast cars with turbo chargers and high horse power continue significant risk. Since car accidents are the leading cause of death among 15 to 20 year olds, 1/3 of those accidents are attributable to speeding. Any fast car is an unwise choice. A good choice is a vehicle with a 4 cylinder engine and an average horsepower which costs less to insure and may save lives.

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September 19, 2008

PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION CERTIFIES “SENIORS FOR SAFE DRIVING PROGRAM” FOR SENIORS 55 YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER

Seniors For Safe Driving hold safety education programs for seniors aged 55 or older. The programs being presented are certified by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and upon completion makes seniors eligible for a 5% discount on automobile insurance premiums across the board for a period of three years. This discount is mandated by Pennsylvania state law. Anyone who has participated in a mature operator program only has to attend a refresher program that is 3 ½ hours that will be completed in one day.

For anyone who has never participated in a mature operator program in the past, it will be necessary to attend a 7 hour program that will be completed in 2 days. The course is presented in a non-threatening environment. The course is informative, entertaining and there is no testing. There is no on the road driving. The course is strictly classroom theory. A nominal tuition fee is charged.

For information to register call 1-800-559-4880 or 724-283-0245. Register online at www.seniorsforsafedriving.com or www.sfsd-pa.com or mail to Seniors for Driving, P.O. Box 2132, Butler, PA 16003.

The Pennsylvania personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily is committed to safe driving and the safe operation of motor vehicles in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and nationally. We are

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September 18, 2008

AS THE ECONOMY CONTINUES TO WORSEN, RESTAURANTS EXPOSE THEMSELVES TO LIABILITY AND OTHERS TO HARM WITH INCREASED LATE NIGHT HOURS, INADEQUATE SECURITY AND IMPROPER BACKGROUND CHECKS ON EMPLOYEES - A PHILADELPHIA INADEQUATE SECURITY LAWYER WEIGHS IN.

Imagine this scenario, you go to a restaurant or franchise later in the evening to enjoy a meal and you are assaulted, stabbed or shot by one of the restaurant’s employees. Imagine another scenario, you are at your home, order takeout, and the delivery man comes and assaults or kills you or a loved one.

In the last few months, Philadelphia personal injury attorney, Jeffrey Reiff, was contacted by individuals who had each suffered a separate and catastrophic incident as mentioned above.

Many restauranteurs employ security systems, attend conferences, hire the best security consultants and set forth rules to insure a safe, crime free workplace and the safety of their customers and employees. But despite the focus on security, horrible crimes are defeating the best systems in place. According to an article published in Nations Restaurant News (www.nrn.com) since 2003, 341 restaurant employees and an unknown number of guests have been murdered on restaurant properties according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Although the number of deaths fell more than 25% between 2003 and 2004, the number is headed north again, jumping nearly 21% from 73 deaths in 2005 to 88 deaths in 2006.

The NRN article quotes Chris McGoey, head of Crime Doctors, a security consulting firm with offices in San Francisco and Los Angeles, “All the studies I’ve seen say that late night retail and your businesses (restaurants) are the leading sites of employee homicides in the United States and the number one place for male fatalities in the workplace”. Mr. McGoey goes on to state “As more chains open 24 hours, we will experience more workplace violence, serious injuries and death in the restaurant business because I don’t think your industry gets it”.

Continue reading "AS THE ECONOMY CONTINUES TO WORSEN, RESTAURANTS EXPOSE THEMSELVES TO LIABILITY AND OTHERS TO HARM WITH INCREASED LATE NIGHT HOURS, INADEQUATE SECURITY AND IMPROPER BACKGROUND CHECKS ON EMPLOYEES - A PHILADELPHIA INADEQUATE SECURITY LAWYER WEIGHS IN." »

September 17, 2008

PHILADELPHIA PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY’S THOUGHTS ON WHAT DO I DO IF MY INSURANCE COMPANY OR THE INSURANCE COMPANY OF THE DEFENDANT FAILS

On September 15, 2008, many insurance companies had their assets battered on Wall Street. AIG, one the nation’s and world’s largest insurance companies, closed at $4.76, reaching a low of $3.50 from its yearly high at $70.13. Many of the Wall Street pundits were calling for the failure of AIG and other insurance companies who sought a lifeline for their survival. I myself was an AIG policyholder and switched to another insurance company earlier this summer as my gut recognized a financial crisis on the horizon. Today, we carefully analyzed all of our files where AIG was our opponent and fielded calls from several clients concerned about their insurance policies or their case’s financial fate where AIG was on the other side. At the time of this writing, I am not quite sure how AIG will ultimately fare in the financial markets. However, consumers should note that each state has a guarantee association in place to protect policyholders in the event of an insurance company failure.

Typically, if you have a claim filed with an insurance company that fails, the State Guarantee Association takes over the claim. If they have a claim and the insurance company is insolvent, the Guarantee Fund accepts the claim the way an insurance company would and they would do everything an insurance company would do said Roger Schmelzer, Chief Executive of the National Conference of Insurance Guarantee Funds, Inc. in Indianapolis. The Guarantee Fund steps into the shoes of the insurance company for claims paying perspective. The Pennsylvania Insurance Guarantee Association only protects Pennsylvania residents and property owners. Residents of other states or Pennsylvania residents owning property out of state are protected by other states Guarantee Associations. While the Guarantee Association payments are limited by statutes, which vary by state, most claims for policy benefits will be paid in full. Claims or policy benefits not paid by the Guarantee Association become claims against the liquidation estate. Most licensed insurance companies are required to belong to their state guarantee association that cover the lines of business that the companies write.

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September 16, 2008

PENNSYLVANIA HIT AND RUN LAWYER SALUTES PENNSYLVANIA LEGISLATOR LOOKING TO CLOSE LOOPHOLE IN STATE LAW THAT SOME BELIEVE ACTUALLY ENCOURAGES PEOPLE WHO MAY BE UNDER THE INFLUENCE TO LEAVE THE SCENE OF THE ACCIDENT - A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

Some Pennsylvania legislators are looking to close a loophole in state law that some believe actually encourages people who may be under the influence to leave the scene of an accident. Under the current Pennsylvania law, the penalty for leaving the scene of a fatal accident is a year in jail. But, if the same driver stays at the scene to render assistance and is found to be under the influence, the penalty can be much stiffer, as much as five years. Rep. David Reed, R-Indiana, is looking to change that provision.

Representative David Reed, an Indiana county Republican, is the sponsor of legislation that got a hearing before the State House Judiciary Committee this past week. Basically, the loophole that exists in Commonwealth law states that if you are involved in a hit and run accident involving a fatality, this would actually encourage someone to leave the scene of an accident as opposed to stopping and rendering aid. Representative Reed correctly noted that currently under Pennsylvania law, the penalty for a fatal hit and run is a year in prison. So for a driver under the influence that flees the scene of a mandatory fatal accident and is apprehended later after sobering up, it is a mandatory one year sentence but if that same driver stops to offer assistance and is found to be legally intoxicated, it is a mandatory three years in jail. Reed’s bill would raise the minimum sentence for fleeing the scene of a fatal accident from one year to five years. For more information on Pennsylvania laws concerning leaving the scene of an accident link to the Pennsylvania Vehicle Code CH. 37; scroll to Subchapter C. www.dmv.state.pa.us

Continue reading "PENNSYLVANIA HIT AND RUN LAWYER SALUTES PENNSYLVANIA LEGISLATOR LOOKING TO CLOSE LOOPHOLE IN STATE LAW THAT SOME BELIEVE ACTUALLY ENCOURAGES PEOPLE WHO MAY BE UNDER THE INFLUENCE TO LEAVE THE SCENE OF THE ACCIDENT - A STEP IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION" »

September 15, 2008

INSURANCE COMPANIES STEP UP THEIR EFFORTS TO INCREASE THE MINIMUM DRIVING AGE ACROSS THE UNITED STATES; PHILADELPHIA PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER APPLAUDS THEIR EFFORTS

The National Auto Safety Group is calling on the States to raise the minimum driving age to 17 or 18 years old. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, raising the driving age will save lives. Vehicle accidents are the largest cause of death among teenagers.

In 2006, 3,490 drivers age 15 to 20 died in automobile crashes. High school teens, ages 15 to 17, were involved in 974,000 crashes nationwide and 406,427 of those teenager accidents involved injuries and the resulting economic impact of those accidents was over $40 billion dollars. According to a study performed by the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the State Farm Insurance Company, one teenage passenger with a teen driver doubles the risk of a fatal crash. The risk is 5 times higher with two or more teen passengers. Many states in the nation that have raised the legal driving age limits or commenced a graduated licensing program have seen a noticeable drop in teen crash death rates over the past few years.

When this writer was 16 years of age, I narrowly escaped a catastrophic death or injury by being in the wrong place at the right time. On a warm August evening, I was asked to go on a ride with four other friends and due to other plans made by my parents, was unable to meet my friends at the scheduled time for pickup. The next morning, I received a call that three of my dear friends were killed when their speeding car went out of control on Roosevelt Boulevard in Philadelphia, PA and struck a tree. Nothing has impacted my life more than this thought which creeps into my mind with all too frequent occasion as I litigate catastrophic teenage driving accident cases. (www.reiffandbily.com)

Graduated licensing, which has become the standard across the United States in the past 15 years, requires teenagers to spend more time driving with a parent or other responsible adult before they go solo.

Continue reading "INSURANCE COMPANIES STEP UP THEIR EFFORTS TO INCREASE THE MINIMUM DRIVING AGE ACROSS THE UNITED STATES; PHILADELPHIA PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER APPLAUDS THEIR EFFORTS" »

September 12, 2008

IN TWO SEPARATE ACCIDENTS ON THE SAME DAY, SEPTA BUSES STRIKE AND KILL ONE PHILADELPHIA GRANDMOTHER WHO HAD THE RIGHT-OF-WAY AND SEVERELY INJURED ANOTHER HANDICAPPED VICTIM IN A WHEELCHAIR.

On Monday, September 8, 2008, a 74 year old grandmother of six was on her way to buy lotto tickets and chat with friends over coffee when she was struck by a SEPTA bus at Broad Street and Oregon Avenue and rushed to Thomas Jefferson Hospital in Philadelphia, PA with severe trauma. Unfortunately, the grandmother died at 4:00 p.m. on September 10, 2008, just three hours after Philadelphia police indicated that a SEPTA bus struck and injured another man in a wheelchair at 8th Street and Girard Avenue in Philadelphia, PA. According to the Philadelphia Daily News, SEPTA officials noted one similarity with both incidents; both victims had the right-of-way when they were hit. According to the Philadelphia Daily News, SEPTA spokesman, William Maloney, stated that the grandmother, who was struck by SEPTA bus, was “well within the crosswalk, we just don’t know what occurred”.

In the other separate incident, Philadelphia police stated that the Route 47 bus turned onto 8th Street from Girard Avenue about 1:00 p.m. on September 10, 2008, just as a man in his 40's rolled his wheelchair into the crosswalk, where he had the right-of-way. According to the Philadelphia Daily News article, the footrest of the chair caught under the bus’s left front tire and dragged him 5 to 10 feet. Police said he was treated for a fractured foot at Hahnemann University Hospital. SEPTA officials stated that neither the driver or the victim saw each other because of trucks parked near the corner. (Philadelphia Daily News Article)

I have written much on my blog about bus accidents and the increase of fatalities and deaths as a result of careless driving and other faults. To this writer, it is unacceptable and causes extraordinary concern that two innocent pedestrians, who clearly had the right-of-way, were hit in one day by SEPTA drivers in two separate accidents. (www.reiffandbily.com)

Continue reading "IN TWO SEPARATE ACCIDENTS ON THE SAME DAY, SEPTA BUSES STRIKE AND KILL ONE PHILADELPHIA GRANDMOTHER WHO HAD THE RIGHT-OF-WAY AND SEVERELY INJURED ANOTHER HANDICAPPED VICTIM IN A WHEELCHAIR." »

September 11, 2008

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.

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 and 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." »

September 10, 2008

SAFETY AND PRIVACY OF HOTEL GUESTS IS A TOP PRIORITY; ARE YOU REALLY SAFE WHEN YOU CHECK INTO YOUR HOME AWAY FROM HOME - A PENNSYLVANIA PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER SHARES HIS THOUGHTS

The safety and privacy of hotel guests should be the top priority for hotel owners and operators. Many times, this simply is not the case. Many hotels, cruise ships and apartment homes are actually full of poorly lit corridors, tunnels, nooks and crannies, and other places were crimes can be and are easily committed. Lack of security in hotels, motels, apartment houses and on cruise ships is a big issue for the tourism and rental housing industry and also an issue that we do not often hear too much about. Usually when we do hear about it, an easily avoidable tragedy has occurred.

Recently, a hotel security guard, with an unrevealed lengthy arrest record, sexually assaulted a teenage occupant of a hotel in Panama City Beach, Florida and then threw his victim from a sixth floor balcony, according to Panama City Florida police. The girl hit two lower roofs, landing in a second floor stairwell, suffering serious injuries. The security guard was questioned by police and released without realizing that he was wanted on an outstanding warrant from the State of Indiana. This attack happened at 1:00 a.m. at a Panama City Beach resort where the security guard was on duty and supposed to be protecting guests from such an event. Research after the violent crime indicated that the security guard had an extensive criminal history, including convictions for burglary, escape, auto theft and receiving stolen property, as well as shoplifting and marijuana possession charges. (article)

Hotel owners, apartment owners and cruise ship operators must be oriented towards security of their guests in today’s world and they must insure that the proper security equipment is installed, maintained and regularly used, and that security guards have their employment and criminal backgrounds properly checked. Technology is an important part in meeting today’s security requirements. Surprisingly, a survey conducted of hotel managers by The Cornell School of Hotel Administration revealed that most hotels made no changes to safety and security staffing or procedures in the year following the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Many times horrific injuries and incidences occur at hotels and motels due to poor lighting, inadequate security, locks that do not function, and the lack of easily affordable and available technological security devices such as closed circuit cameras. Because of such inadequate security, many unsuspecting guests are robbed, shot, killed, rape, stabbed or assaulted in hotels, motels, shopping malls, apartment parking lots, office buildings, condos and/or cruise ships.

Continue reading "SAFETY AND PRIVACY OF HOTEL GUESTS IS A TOP PRIORITY; ARE YOU REALLY SAFE WHEN YOU CHECK INTO YOUR HOME AWAY FROM HOME - A PENNSYLVANIA PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER SHARES HIS THOUGHTS" »

September 5, 2008

FEDERAL REGULATIONS IN THE NEAR FUTURE WILL MANDATE TRUCK AND BUS DRIVERS IN SAFETY SENSITIVE POSITIONS TO BE TESTED FOR SLEEP DISORDERS TO DECREASE CRASH RATES AND FATALITIES

In the past, I have written much on my blog about the duties owed by common carriers, including but not limited to commercial bus companies and their drivers and trucking companies and their drivers, to the public to make sure that such safety sensitive positions require testing for drugs, alcohol and common sleep disorders.

It has been determined that many truck drivers, bus drivers and railroad workers suffer from a disorder known as obstructive sleep apnea that is a major cause of excessive daytime sleepiness that leads people to fall asleep while sitting, reading, and even driving. According to yearly statistics, more than 13,000 fatalities and 70,000 injuries are directly caused by drowsy driving. Surprisingly, 53% of Americans report driving while drowsy and another 19% have reported nodding off while behind the wheel. Another 23% of American drivers claim to personally know of someone who has crashed due to drowsy driving.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has taken positive action. This government organization has established a medical expert panel on sleep apnea to determine the prevalence and effect of sleep apnea on commercial truck drivers. A nationally known sleep expert, Dr. Mark Mahowald, Director of The Minnesota Regional Sleep Disorders Center and past President of The American Academy of Sleep Medicine, states that it is absolutely indefensible that Federal Highway Safety officials do not have commercial truck and bus drivers screened for sleep disorders. “This is a major safety issue. There is no reason not to enact guidelines to check drivers.”

The Philadelphia truck accident law firm of Reiff and Bily has been representing clients injured by semi-trucks, tractor trailers, 18 wheeler trucks, delivery trucks and common carriers in Pennsylvania since 1979.

Continue reading "FEDERAL REGULATIONS IN THE NEAR FUTURE WILL MANDATE TRUCK AND BUS DRIVERS IN SAFETY SENSITIVE POSITIONS TO BE TESTED FOR SLEEP DISORDERS TO DECREASE CRASH RATES AND FATALITIES" »

September 4, 2008

ANOTHER PENNSYLVANIA SUV DRIVER ACCIDENT AVOIDANCE MANEUVER CAUSES YET ANOTHER SUV TO FLIP OVER SERIOUSLY INJURING A MOTHER AND DAUGHTER IN BUCKS COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

According to the Bucks County Courier Times, an Upper Makefield woman and her daughter were injured on Monday, August 26, 2008 after their SUV flipped over on Route 1 Superhighway in Middletown, PA. The cause of the accident initially was indicated to be a wicker chair flying off the back of a pickup truck, landing on the highway, causing the Upper Makefield woman to make an emergency accident avoidance maneuver, swerving around the chair, causing her black Suburban to overturn. The driver of the SUV was listed in critical condition at St. Marys Hospital in Middletown, PA and her daughter was flown to Children’s Hospital in Philadelphia. The mother was ejected from the vehicle.

At the Pennsylvania SUV rollover firm of Reiff and Bily, we have been investigating, researching and litigating SUV rollover and 15 passenger van rollover cases for many years. These vehicles all have a high center of gravity and are noted to be the most unstable vehicles on the roadways. Almost always, the press and the automotive manufacturers are quick to blame the driver who was simply taking an evasive action to avoid an emergency situation, such as the one mentioned in the Bucks County case. A chief hazard in operating SUVs occurs when the driver takes an emergency action, steering in one direction and then rapidly correcting in the opposite direction, resulting in the rollover of the unstable vehicle. If you watch the television advertisements or read the newspaper advertisements, one would think that sport utility vehicles are built for strength and safety and designed to be driven off the road. Yet very few of them have roll bars and, worse yet, very few meet the National Highway Safety Administration roof safety standards for automobiles. Even though those standards are minimal.

In the last 10 years, sport utility vehicles have taken over America’s roads. One of every six new vehicles sold in the United States is an SUV and now there are over 20 million of them in the nation’s garages. Auto makers defend SUV rollover cases vigorously and do not want consumers to know about their abysmal safety record. When people spend upwards of $35,000 for upscale SUVs, they assume that they are purchasing the safety and stability of vehicles used in off road experiences and in the case with the Hummer, the stability of a vehicle used in combat.

SUV rollovers are the most common cause of spinal cord injury and paralysis due to roof collapse. Most of the SUVs lack an adequate roof strength to withstand a rollover accident. When the car rolls over, the roof generally collapses on the head of the occupant causing crushed necks and spines leading to paralysis. As the roof collapses, the windows are caused to break, setting the stage for an ejection from the vehicle. Most of the American made SUVs do not have roll bars and the older models lack electronic stability control, which was placed in newer models, and has been fairly effective in preventing more serious injuries. Not only does the SUV have a higher center of gravity, making them top heavy and prone to rollover, the distance between left and right tires and the middle of the vehicle reveals a very narrow wheel base, causing the vehicle to easily tip over in an accident avoidance maneuver. Since SUVs and 15 passenger vans are top heavy, any quick turning of the steering wheel in an accident avoidance maneuver can cause the SUV to flip over.

Continue reading "ANOTHER PENNSYLVANIA SUV DRIVER ACCIDENT AVOIDANCE MANEUVER CAUSES YET ANOTHER SUV TO FLIP OVER SERIOUSLY INJURING A MOTHER AND DAUGHTER IN BUCKS COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA" »

September 3, 2008

BICYCLE RIDERSHIP ON THE UPSWING IN PHILADELPHIA AND SO ARE INJURIES AND FATALITIES - A PHILADELPHIA PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY SHARES HIS THOUGHTS

This writer has been an active bicyclist for the last 40 years. In the last two weeks, I have been the victim of two separate serious bike accidents causing significant injuries.

As the price of fuel continues to rise, more and more Philadelphians are turning towards bicycles as a viable mode of transportation. The City of Philadelphia recently announced a city-wide network of “bike friendly” streets to serve bicyclists as part of a comprehensive program fully recognizing the bicycle as a means of transportation. Philadelphia has committed itself to the promotion of bicycle use in the City with the establishment of the Mayor’s task force on bicycle safety in 1993 through to the annual City Employees Bike to Work Day. The City of Philadelphia has made improvements to the Schuylkill River bike paths and links to the Valley Forge Bikeway and established the bicycle network plan, adding a new dimension to Philadelphia’s transportation system. Unfortunately, as more Philadelphians use their cycles for pleasure or a viable means of transportation, more injuries or fatalities will occur.

As recently as August 3, 2008, a bicyclist was struck and killed along Roosevelt Boulevard in Philadelphia, near 6th Street, in Feltonville. According to a press release issued by the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, a bicyclist crossing Roosevelt Boulevard at 7th Street in Hunting Park was killed by a driver who was operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol. The driver was charged with homicide by vehicle.

The Philadelphia bicycle accident and personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily has successfully been representing injured bikers since 1979.

Continue reading "BICYCLE RIDERSHIP ON THE UPSWING IN PHILADELPHIA AND SO ARE INJURIES AND FATALITIES - A PHILADELPHIA PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY SHARES HIS THOUGHTS" »

September 2, 2008

PENNSYLVANIA AND NEW JERSEY BUS ACCIDENTS SPOTLIGHTS THE LACK OF PROPER SAFETY REGULATIONS AND CONCERN FOR PASSENGERS

As gas prices continue to rise in Pennsylvania and the rest of the nation, bus and school bus transportation is at an all time high. As a direct consequence of this rise in bus passenger usage is the increase in the number of bus accidents that cause personal injuries and death.

Several million individuals will board public transportation and school buses this year. As public transportation by bus becomes a more popular mode of travel, more individuals will be at risk of being involved in a bus accident and accident induced injuries. Studies indicate that ridership has increased significantly in the past five years with fatalities and injuries from accidents also on the rise. There are over 500,000,000 bus drivers registered in the United States, with this number continuously on the rise. As more accidents occur, it is important that bus companies, their drivers, and other employees be held accountable for the negligence that contributes to such bus accidents. It is equally as important for the state and federal government agencies to implement tighter safety standards and regulations for common carriers and the manufacturers of buses that transport precious cargo.

In the last two weeks of August 2008 alone, an accident occurred involving two tour buses in Northwest New Jersey, sending dozens of Pennsylvania and New Jersey citizens to hospitals. According to the State Police, one of the buses was braking for traffic and changed lanes, hitting the rear of a second bus. The second bus was caused to move into the median, quickly dipping down about 50 feet, causing the bus to turn over on its side according to Sgt. Robert Billings of the New Jersey State Police. There were nearly 100 people on board both buses. On August 26, 2008, another bus accident occurred where a pedestrian was struck by a New Jersey Transit bus in Camden County. Earlier this summer, 50 teens, including 7 New Jerseyites were on a tour bus when it crashed and burned during a cross-country summer trip. That crash occurred when a tour bus driver missed a curve, causing the vehicle to go off a state highway while the youths were on a tour to Bryce Canyon National Park in southern Utah. The tour bus landed upside down in a creek bed and caught fire and burst into flames. 47 teenagers and a half dozen chaperones were onboard according to the Highway Patrol.

At the Philadelphia personal injury law firm of Reiff and Bily, we have been researching, investigating and litigating bus accident cases for almost 30 years.

Continue reading "PENNSYLVANIA AND NEW JERSEY BUS ACCIDENTS SPOTLIGHTS THE LACK OF PROPER SAFETY REGULATIONS AND CONCERN FOR PASSENGERS" »

September 1, 2008

Filing Lawsuits Against Foreign Manufacturers

Pennsylvania Product Liability Lawyer Filing Lawsuits Against Foreign Manufacturers Whose Products Injure Local People
by Raymond M. Bily, Esquire

Foreign manufacturers of defective products can be sued in state or federal courts but doing so sometimes presents special challenges. Foreign auto makers, industrial product manufacturers, and consumer product makers and their intermediaries are not beyond the reach of U.S. courts if they put defective products into the stream of commerce. A manufacturer who has offices or advertises in a state generally has sufficient contact to be sued in state courts. Less clear is when a product is manufactured overseas and comes into a state indirectly. Courts generally inquire whether the manufacturer had some knowledge or expectation that the product would be purchased by consumers in the particular state.

Assuming jurisdiction is proper, a more difficult problem can involve service of process. Foreign corporations are savvy litigants. They understand that mere distance alone can be used to create the perception that injured consumers will have a very difficult time pursuing them in U.S. courts.

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August 29, 2008

My Pennsylvania Personal Injury Attorney Reinforced the Value of Hope

The dictionary defines "hope" as the belief in a positive outcome relating to the events and circumstances in one's life. Hope implies a certain amount of despair; wanting, wishing, suffering or perseverance, believing that a better or positive outcome is possible even when there is some evidence leading to the contrary.

The term "false hope" refers to hope highly based on fantasy or an extremely unlikely outcome.

At the law firm of Reiff and Bily, our lawyers understand and respect the value of hope. It is our job to communicate the plaintiffs dreams and hopes to the insurance companies and ultimately to the juries who hear our cases. It is our job to prove that what the plaintiff is capable of doing or was capable of doing prior to an incident and identify the compensation necessary for the plaintiff to recognize the fulfillment of his dreams and goals. The lawyers of Reiff and Bily are not afraid to ask the insurance companies or juries to fully compensate plaintiffs for the loss of their dreams and hopes.

Hope was personified in Greek mythology as "Elpis". When Pandora opened Pandora's box, she let out all of the evils except one known as hope.

In law, damages refer to the money awarded to a claimant, also known as a plaintiff, following a successful claim in a civil action. Damages in personal injury or tort affairs are generally awarded to place the plaintiff in a position that he or she would not have been in had the tort or action not have taken place which put the person in the situation. Compensatory damages compensates the plaintiff for pain and suffering and loss of amenities and losses of hope. Examples of this include physical or emotional pain and suffering, loss of companionship, loss of consortium, disfigurement, loss of reputation, loss or impairment of mental or physical capacity, loss of life's pleasures, frustration, humiliation, degradation, and a non-inclusive list of other factors. This is not easily quantifiable and depends on the individual circumstances. We refer to it as, what is the value of hope? What is the value of the loss of a plaintiff’s loss of dreams and hopes that he had prior to the incident? We seek to recover full compensatory damages generally to place the plaintiff in a position in which he would have been had the offense or tort not taken place.

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August 28, 2008

HIT AND RUN DEATHS IN PHILADELPHIA ARE MOUNTING AT AN EVER INCREASING PACE - HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF

According to the Philadelphia Daily News article posted on Wednesday, August 27, 2008, it is quoted “In Philadelphia there is a death count that never makes it to the City’s homicide tally”. (Philadelphia Daily News article) Although the City’s homicide count is down dramatically this year, the hit-and-run deaths so far in 2008 already equal the total number for 2007, according to statistics from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation and Philadelphia’s Police Department Accident Investigation Division.

In this article, the Philadelphia personal injury and Pennsylvania vehicle accident law firm of Reiff and Bily was quoted and partner Raymond Bily noted that “a person who does not have a criminal record and is charged with a hit and run involving death or serious bodily injury faces a mandatory minimum of just one year in prison.” Mr. Bily was also quoted as saying that “if a driver isn’t found until days after a crash, substance-abuse testing becomes more difficult.” I can state honestly that there is almost not a week that goes by where we are not contacted by at least one person who has been a victim or had a loved one who was a victim of a hit and run driver resulting in serious injuries and often time fatalities. Too often our clients are faced with situations where they have no avenue for financial recourse, aside from seeking minimal state benefits.

According to the Philadelphia Daily News (August 27, 2008), Theresa Sautter’s 15 year old daughter, Marylee Otto, was run down in March allegedly by Michelle Johnson, 40, a registered nurse who was tracked down when she left her damaged vehicle at her place of employment - The Curren-Frumhold Correctional Facility. Sautter will hold a rally at Rhawn Street and Lexington Avenue in Philadelphia to promote awareness of these crimes and Pennsylvania’s current laws.

Philadelphia is where one third of all Pennsylvania hit and run fatalities occurred in 2007 and this year records indicate deaths are already on a par with last year’s record and it is only August.

Even though not carrying automobile insurance is against the law in most states, including the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, it happens more often than people realize and with growing frequency in Philadelphia. According to the insurance research counsel, chances are greater than one in seven that an at-fault driver in a collision with another vehicle would be uninsured. Although this is a national statistic, our research reveals that the chances are even greater in Philadelphia that a vehicle involved in a collision will not be insured.

Continue reading "HIT AND RUN DEATHS IN PHILADELPHIA ARE MOUNTING AT AN EVER INCREASING PACE - HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF" »

August 25, 2008

PENNSYLVANIA SUV ROLLOVER LAWYER WEIGHS IN ON DESIGN DEFECTS INHERENT TO SUVs AND I5 PASSENGER VANS IN PENNSYLVANIA AND THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES

On January 19, 2002, Benetta Buell-Wilson of San Diego, California was driving her 1997 Ford Explorer on an interstate highway when she swerved to avoid a metal object in the road and the SUV went out of control. The vehicle skidded across the highway and rolled more than 4 ½ times when the Explorer came to rest on its roof. The accident left the 49 year old woman crushed and paralyzed. A California jury awarded Buell-Wilson and her husband $369,000,000, including $246,000,000 in punitive damages. The state courts of California reduced the amount of the verdict. However, the California Court of Appeals approved an $82.6 million dollar settlement, including $55 million in punitive damages.

The experienced Philadelphia motor vehicle accident and personal injury lawyers at the law firm of Reiff and Bily have been handling SUV Explorer rollover and 15 passenger van rollover cases in Pennsylvania and other states in the nation with a successful track record. The Explorer and other SUV’s are flawed because they have a higher center of gravity and are prone to rollover. Also, research indicates that the Explorer roofs are inadequate to protect occupants in a rollover accident and Ford was aware of knowledge of these designs flaws but failed to fix them. Ford has consistently argued that the verdicts against them are unjust because the design of the vehicles meets minimal federal safety standards.

On February 8, 2008, the Ford Motor Company paid $6.5 million dollars to a 41 year old man left brain damaged in a 2004 rollover accident involving an Explorer sport utility vehicle that a Texas jury ordered them to pay. In that claim, Ruben Camora lost control of his 1993 Explorer when a tire lost its tread and he was ejected from the vehicle as it rolled over. His mother, who sued on his behalf, noted that the tread separation set off vibrations on the rear of the vehicle that caused it to skate sideways because of a defect in the SUV’s suspension.

Continue reading "PENNSYLVANIA SUV ROLLOVER LAWYER WEIGHS IN ON DESIGN DEFECTS INHERENT TO SUVs AND I5 PASSENGER VANS IN PENNSYLVANIA AND THROUGHOUT THE UNITED STATES" »

August 22, 2008

VIOLATION OF BUILDING CODES AND PREMISES LIABILITY IS YOUR APARTMENT, HOTEL ROOM OR OFFICE SAFE?

Premises liability assigns blame to the owner of the venue where a violation is committed. A building code is generally a set of rules that sets forth guidelines for acceptable safety levels for constructed objects such as buildings, apartments, hotels, houses and other structures. These codes were enacted to protect public health, safety and general welfare of individuals as they relate to the construction and occupancy of buildings and structures.

I recently concluded a case where a young mother and her two year old daughter stepped on her apartment balcony, which was three stories above the ground, after which the balcony became unsecured from the premises, tilted to the ground causing the plaintiff to be thrown three stories resulting in a substantial and life altering injury. Our experts and structural engineers investigated the matter and determined that the balcony was never secured properly, was improperly maintained, and was never inspected in a proper and due fashion. A method of affixation of the balcony to the building was in violation of the building codes. The landlord’s failure to maintain and inspect the balcony was completely irresponsible and negligent, subjecting a rent-paying tenant to undue risk, harm and, ultimately, life changing injuries.

Building codes were established to set forth minimal acceptable standards necessary for protecting people and property. Normally, we hear about violation of building codes when a natural disaster strikes. However, many times owners of homes, buildings, or apartments attempt to save money by taking shortcuts in violation of local laws and building codes. For example, commonly electrical work is performed by non-licensed electricians. The fire prevention code limits the number of wires under each screw in a receptacle or switch. It appears safe to use but fires can occur when the second wire pops out from underneath the screw so one is maximum. Code also requires that outlets be placed every six feet along walls in most rooms and every two feet along kitchen counters to accommodate short safety cords on kitchen appliances. Also, all light fixtures must be grounded. In kitchens, there must be a 15 amp lighting circuit, as well as a separate circuit for the dishwasher and refrigerator and two 20 amp circuits for receptacles. Local and federal codes change regularly so it is important that the necessary research be committed before starting a project.

For approximately 30 years, the Philadelphia personal injury lawyers of Pennsylvania personal injury attorneys have been successfully prosecuting premise liability claims. Property and land owners are required to maintain their properties in such a way that it protects those who are lawfully upon the premises.

Continue reading "VIOLATION OF BUILDING CODES AND PREMISES LIABILITY IS YOUR APARTMENT, HOTEL ROOM OR OFFICE SAFE? " »

August 21, 2008

USAGE OF CELL PHONE WHILE DRIVING TAKES ANOTHER TEEN’S LIFE

Another young individual was killed while sending a text message moments before an auto crash.

On Sunday, August 17, 2008, Fox News reported that in Highland, California, a 16 year old girl died after losing control of her car while texting on her phone moments before the accident. The report not only indicated that Kayla Preuss of Highland, California, was driving on Interstate 10 when she lost control of her car, it also noted that she was drunk and had been speeding.

On April 7, 2008, I noted on my blog a case where the distracted driver of another vehicle in Pennsylvania was texting his girlfriend a message while his close friend and passenger innocently sat in the backseat of the vehicle. That vehicle driver lost control of the SUV he was in, causing it to rollover and causing the innocent passengers to be ejected out of the vehicle resulting in permanent and catastrophic injuries that could have easily been prevented. I am consistently amazed at how many people are driving while having a conversation on a cell phone or text messaging, even though it is against the law. Any “plain fool” can recognize that a person with a cell phone or PDA in one hand and driving with the other hand, will not have their complete attention paid to the road and hence, will not have their vehicle in complete control if an emergency situation arises. The distracted driver is a major cause of car accidents and rollovers.

The experienced Philadelphia personal injury lawyers at the Pennsylvania motor vehicle accident law firm of Reiff and Bily have over 30 years experience handling of motor vehicle rollover and catastrophic loss cases.

Continue reading "USAGE OF CELL PHONE WHILE DRIVING TAKES ANOTHER TEEN’S LIFE" »

August 20, 2008

2007 TRAFFIC ANNUAL ASSESSMENT HIGHLIGHTS

On August 14, 2008, the National Highway and Transportation Safety Authority (www.NHTSA.gov) noted in their study that the overall number of traffic fatalities in 2007 reached its lowest level since 1994.

The 2007 annual assessment of motor vehicle crash fatalities of people injured revealed a 3.9% decline in people killed in the United States from 42,708 in 2006 to 41,059 in 2007. This reduction in fatalities is the largest in terms of number and percentage since 1992. Although passenger car occupant fatalities declined for the 5th consecutive year and light truck occupant fatalities dropped for the 2nd consecutive year, it is noteworthy that motorcycle fatalities continued their 10 year increase, reaching 5,154 in 2007, the highest level since NHTSA started collecting fatality crash data in 1975.

Motorcycle fatalities now account for 13% of all total fatalities. In Pennsylvania, the number of fatalities dropped to 1,491 in 2007 from 1,525 in 2006, a change of -2.2%. Internet users may access these crash statistics and other general information on traffic safety at www.nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/CATS/index.aspx.

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August 19, 2008

CATASTROPHIC UNDERRIDE TRUCK ACCIDENTS A LEADING AND PREVENTABLE CAUSE OF DEATH

Many years ago, one of my law partners, John Morrissey, was catastrophically killed when his vehicle collided with the rear-end of a truck parked on the side of the road in the dark of evening. This is known as a truck rear underride accident. Unfortunately, underride accidents are a common cause of death and catastrophic injuries. An underride occurs when a passenger's vehicle collides with the rear-end or side end of a truck, trailer or other large commercial vehicle, does not equip with a defective underride guards or bumpers, without an underride rail, lower bumper or guard, the vehicle underrides the trucks rear or side frame by traveling beneath the chassis of the larger vehicle. The impact between the heavy frame of a truck, whether in the rear or on the side, is equally devastating to the occupants to the car or vehicle. The roof support or roof pillars of the vehicle are not engineered to withstand the tremendous forces of such a crash and can collapse as a result of the wedge effect of the deadly impact forces.

For almost 30 years, the Pennsylvania motor vehicle lawyers at Reiff and Bily have handled thousands of motor vehicle accident cases involving trucks, buses and automobiles.

In January 1996, NTHSA issued two new Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSSs) that were designed to reduce the number of injuries and fatalities resulting from the collision of passenger vehicles with the rear-ends of heavy trailers and semi-trailers. The first standard, FMVSS number 223, "where impact guards" specifies the performance or requirements the rear impact guards must meet. The second standard, FMVSS number 224 "rear impact protection" requires that most new trailers and semi-trailers with a GVWR of 10,000 pounds or more be equipped with a rear impact guard that meets the requirements of FMVSS number 223. The requirement of these FMVSSs became effective in January 1998. NTHSA had been studying the issue of rear underride cases for many years and proposed solutions to the problems as early as 1981. The agency had taken two approaches to the problem. The first deals with increasing the conspicuity of large vehicles in an effort to prevent rear impact crashes. FMVSS number 108, "lamps, reflective devices and associated equipment" requires retro reflective materials on the sides and rear of all trailers of 80 or more inches width and with a gross vehicle GVWR of 10,000 pounds or more. That standard became effective in December 1993 and has been proven to be very effective in reducing incidents or rear and side impacts into trailers and semi-trailers. Even with the existing and new legislation, rear underrides are going to still occur due to the large number of older trailers, buses and other large scale commercial vehicles on the roads of the United States.

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August 18, 2008

WITH GAS PRICES RISING, IS BUYING THE NEW SMART CAR A SMART DECISION WHEN IT COMES TO SAFETY ?

ONE LAWYER’S OPINION ON CRASH-WORTHINESS

As the price of gas continues to rise, manufacturers make increasing promises stressing fuel efficiency. The Smart Car, which has been operating for an extensive period of time on the streets of European capitals, is now making a presence in Philadelphia, New York, Los Angeles and other major metropolitan areas. It is said that the Smart Car is supposed to get 40 miles per gallon and the manufacturer claims that the Smart Car is also smartly safe. Statistics are of it being 8.8 feet long and slightly wider and taller than 5 feet, the Smart Car is one of the smallest cars on any road in any country, weighing in at about 700 pounds versus the weight of a standard SUV of 4,000 pounds.

The United States “ForTwo" version has a three cylinder, 700 cc engine, which is smaller than the engine of a motorcycle that I used to operate before becoming involved in defective automotive product liability and safety. The previous model, the Smart for City coupe was tested in 2000 and it received a three star out of five star rating. Most cars received a four or five star safety rating, so three stars is low, stated Euro Ncap spokeswoman Cordelia Wilson. The Smart Car is approximately three feet shorter and 700 pounds lighter than the Mini Cooper. The President of The Insurance Institute of Highway Safety, Adrian Lund noted “all things being equal in safety, bigger and heavier is always better, but among the smallest cars, the engineers among the Smart Car did their homework and designed a high level of safety in a very small package”. Many will argue that the Smart Car has a crash-worthy design for its size when equipped with the latest safety gear, which is important to such a small car. The standard equipment on this car includes seat mounted combination airbags designed to protect the heads and chests of both the driver and passenger and also electronic stability control or ESC. ESC is important not only in a Smart Car, but in all cars as it enables drivers to maintain control during accident avoidance or emergency maneuvers or on slippery roads.

Of significant concern to this writer is that the Smart Car lacks a sufficient front-end crush zone, which is a key component in reducing injury risks in serious frontal crashes. Research indicates that a stiff side structure and standard side airbags contribute to good smart ratings and a side test which replicates a crash with a pickup truck or SUV. However, it is important to note that the driver’s door unlatched during the crash. This confirmed a finding noted by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s side test of a Smart Car released last month. The Institute downgraded the Smart Car’s structural rating from good to acceptable. It is important that doors not unlatch in crashes because it could allow a complete or partial occupant ejection which could lead to catastrophic injuries. Statistics indicate that the risk of death is much higher in crashes of much smaller and lighter vehicles.

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August 15, 2008

Pennsylvania Swimming Pool and Hot Tub Accidents: Is Your Swimming Pool Safe?

Swimming pools, diving boards and hot tubs often pose a significant risk of serious injury and even death if proper safety measures are not followed. Each year in Pennsylvania, swimming pool accidents claim the lives of many innocent children as well as thousands of adults. Homeowners, hotel owners and apartment owners who have pools owe a small responsibility to provide a safe environment for both children and adults but too many times this does not happen.

Often times a swimming pool draws children like a magnet that swimming pool accidents are the second leading cause of death for children under the age of 14. Each year in the United States, 1,000 children die and 5,000 others are hospitalized with catastrophic injuries due to swimming-related accidents. Unbelievably, drowning is the leading cause of death among children from ages 2-4. When a child submerges for 2 minutes or more in the water, the child loses consciousness. Irreversible brain damage sets in after 4-6 minutes of water submersion.

Diving board accidents or dives into shallow pools are responsible for about 10% of all catastrophic spinal cord injuries. The lawyers at the Pennsylvania personal injury attorneys and swimming pool injury law firm of Reiff and Bily have represented numerous Pennsylvania families and individuals who have suffered injury or death as the result of swimming accidents. Most swimming pool injuries occur because of improper design or improper construction or failure to properly secure the pool from small children or failure to maintain the pool in good condition.

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August 14, 2008

Pennsylvania Personal Injury Attorney Weighs in on Expert Witnesses

The high cost of litigation is ever increasing and these hired guns are out of control. Are they worth the money?

The costs associated with personal injury lawsuits are quite significant and rising every day. Many state that the overhead costs of malpractice and product liability lawyer litigation are exorbitant. Many Americans hear that lawsuits are rampant and frivolous, clogging the courts and depriving taxpayers of their funds. On the other hand, honest plaintiff attorneys maintain that they are the policemen of society and that frivolous lawsuits are an exception. Obviously, an experienced personal injury or product liability lawyer would have to be crazy to take a meritless claim which would result in a huge expenditure if the same attorney is working on a contingent fee basis.

The purpose of the tort system is to fairly compensate victims and make them whole by virtue of compensatory damages. Obviously, there are some lawyers who will take just about any case that walks into the door and hope that writing a few threatening letters or taking minimal action will scare their opponents into a quick and “easy A” settlement These are the types of lawyers the educated consumer should avoid. It is important, however, when seeking a lawyer to represent your interests, to remember that you get one bite at the apple and your lawyer should be qualified, insured, in good standing with the bar association, interested in your claim, screened for suitability and experience handling legal matters such as yours. The lawyers at the Pennsylvania personal injury firm of Reiff and Bily have 30 years experience handling thousands of carefully screened car accident, medical malpractice and defective products cases. They will carefully screen your case, investigate comprehensively and decide if it is worthwhile to pursue without wasting your time or their resources - as a result of such careful screening. They only accept approximately 30-40 percent of the clients that contact them. These distinguished Pennsylvania car accident attorneys have recovered in excess of 150 million dollars for their clients solely on a contingent basis.

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August 13, 2008

IS SETTLING YOUR CASE BETTER THAN GOING TO TRIAL?

Recently on August 7, 2008, The New York Times published an article with the caption “Note to Victims of Accidents, Medical Malpractice, Broken Contracts and the like; When You Sue Make a Deal”. Author Jonathan Glater stated the clear lesson of a soon to be released study of civil lawsuits has found that most of the plaintiffs who decided to pass up a settlement offer and went to trial, ended up getting less money than if they had taken that offer.

As a personal injury and product liability lawyer in Philadelphia with 30 years experience, it is my position that the vast majority of cases do settle for a proper and just amount if properly prepared from the outset. Randall Kiser, a co-author of a study and principal analyst at DecisionSet, a consulting firm that advises clients in litigation decision notes that 80 to 92% of all cases settle and that furthermore, there is no way to know whether either side in most cases could have done better in trial. In September, a study will be published in the September issue of Journal of Empirical Legal Studies noting that mistakes are more often made in cases where lawyers are paid a share of whatever is won at trial.

As I have personally been involved for close to 30 years with thousands of cases, solely on a contingent fee basis, I believe that it is necessary for the lawyer to explain all of the facts of a claim or the “good, bads and uglies” to their client and properly explain the odds for success and/or failure based in the jurisdiction where the case is to be litigated.

We inform each of our clients that they will have the ultimate decision whether to accept or deny a settlement figure. We find often that some lawyers, whether they are wrongful death or auto product liability attorneys, simply do not prepare their cases to the best of their abilities and in fact, some times other lawyers egos get in the way of a proper and full settlement. Mr. Glater, in The New York Times article, claims that law schools do not teach lawyers how to handicap trials nor do they help develop the important skill of telling the client that the case is not a winner. Obviously, clients do not like to hear such news.

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August 12, 2008

FATAL AUTOMOBILE ACCIDENTS ARE THE LEADING CAUSE

OF TEENAGE/YOUNG ADULT DEATHS WORLDWIDE

The World Health Organization released a report in April 2007 stating that a fatal automobile accident is the leading cause of death among teens and young adults between the ages of 10 and 24 worldwide. The organization promoted a long list of suggestions such as safer roads and vehicles, helmet laws, prosecution of speeders and drunk drivers and better education for drivers and pedestrians. Some of the more interesting but troubling findings from the WHO report and United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention note that fatal auto accidents are the leading cause of accidents between ages 10 and 24 worldwide.

Approximately 30% of all auto accident fatalities involve individuals under age 25.

Auto accidents result in annual costs of over $500 billion worldwide in medical care, disability and property damage.

In the United States, about 2 out of every 5 deaths for teens are caused by auto accidents.

Drivers between ages 16 and 19 in the United States are four times more likely than older drivers to be involved in an accident. In the United States and Pennsylvania, drunk driving is the leading criminal cause of death. There were approximately 17,000 victims of drunk driving accidents last year. Approximately 40% of all motor vehicle fatalities are alcohol related. Frequent drunk drivers are responsible for almost 60% of all alcohol related fatalities. In 2007, drivers between the ages of 16 and 20 were involved in 1,719 drunk driving accidents. In 2006 in Pennsylvania, there were 13,616 alcohol-related crashes, with 545 alcohol-related deaths. 78% of the drinking drivers involved in these accidents were male. On an average day in Pennsylvania, 37 alcohol-related crashes occur injuring 29 people and on an average day, 1.5 people were killed in an alcohol-related car crash in Pennsylvania. Interesting to note that on the holidays, 15% of all crashes involve alcohol usage. In the United States, alcohol-related motor crashes kill someone every 31 minutes and injure someone every 2 minutes.

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August 11, 2008

BUS CRASH IN TEXAS KILLS 17 AND INJURIES MANY OTHERS

WHY ARE THESE INCIDENTS WHICH ARE EASILY PREVENTABLE INCREASING IN FREQUENCY?

On Friday, August 8, 2008, 17 people were killed and many others catastrophically injured when an unlicenced chartered bus ran off a highway overpass in Sherman, Texas. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration ordered Iguala Bus Mex and Angel Tours Inc. to cease all commercial operations. The agency issued a second order finding that the activities of Angel De La Torre, owner and President of the bus company in connection with motor carrier operations pose an imminent hazard to the public. Authorities also announced that the bus was pulled out of service because it was unauthorized to be operated. The driver’s traffic record included multiple citations for driving while intoxicated in 2001, for speeding in May 2004 and March 2007 and his license was suspended for two months in 2001 because of a DWI conviction noted a spokesperson from the National Transportation Safety Board. The driver failed roadside inspections twice last year and his bus was pulled out of service both times but inspectors. The bus accident in Sherman, Texas is among the nation’s deadliest and calls to question why so many of these accidents that don’t have to happen are occurring with greater frequency.

Recently in July 2008, another serious accident occurred when a bus ran through a stop sign on an elevated exit ramp and off an overpass. Repeatedly, there have been demands made upon the National Transportation and Safety Bureau to mandate stronger bus safety regulations, including stronger roofs, window glazing and mandatory seat belts. History will reveal that such recommendations have been made to NTSB since 1968 but have never been made into law. In July 2008, the National Transportation Safety Board released its findings regarding March 2007 bus crash where 5 students from Ohio’s Bluffton University were killed and dozens more injured. Mark Rosenker, Chairman of The National Transportation Safety Board believes that the right safety equipment, including seat belts, could have minimized the losses. But Rosenker wanted more than just seat belts. “It is making the vehicle crash-worthy.” That includes better glazing of the windows, stronger roof lines, creating stronger seats, creating a compartment where, in fact, “if people were pushed around, they wouldn’t also necessarily be ejected”. Rosenker also contributed the accident to poorly placed road signs causing a confusing atmosphere for the driver. He noted “the road signs should have been next to each other. One that showed with an arrow that if you go to the left, you will be in the exit lane, and, another which showed that if you remain in the lane, you will be in the through lane. The problem was they had such a description, about a quarter of a mile before getting there. In response to Georgia Department of Transportation officials have changed the placement of its highway signs where the accident occurred.

The Pennsylvania vehicle accident lawyers of Reiff and Bily is one of Pennsylvania’s most successful personal injury law firms with extensive experience and understanding of common carrier litigation, as well as defectively designed automotive vehicles.

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August 11, 2008

Toys And Playgrounds Might Not Be As Safe As One Would Presume

There could be danger lurking in your own home or backyard. Injuries to children can occur anywhere. They can happen in your house, backyard, school, day care facility, or even in a public park. While it is seemingly impossible to keep a child protected all times, it is important for parents and children to become aware of the dangers that lurk in play grounds and toys. The Pennsylvania personal injury and play-ground accident lawyers at the Philadelphia products liability law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling thousands of personal injury cases since 1979. Our Pennsylvania defective product attorneys have had extensive experience in the area of defective toys (products liability claims) and play-ground or amusement injuries.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that in 2001 approximately 45% of playground-related injuries are severe (fractures, internal injuries, concussions, dislocations, and amputations) and about 75% of nonfatal injuries were related to playground equipment failure, misoperation or malfunction.

Between 1990 and 2000, 147 children ages 14 and younger died from playground-related injuries. 82 of these injuries (56%) died from strangulation and 31 of these injuries (20%) died from falls to the playground surface. Most of these fatalities (70%) occurred on home playgrounds. Public playground climbers resulted in the most common cause of an injury as compared to any other equipment. At home playgrounds, swings were responsible for most injuries.

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August 8, 2008

Elder Care Abuse

The Golden years Are Not Always So Golden

Our elders are responsible for the way the world is today. They have unlimited knowledge of the world and should be treated with respect. It is a sad fact to recognize that this is not always the reality. Elder care abuse is a very serious issue and every year thousands of elderly Americans are abused in their own homes, in relatives’ homes, and even in facilities responsible for their care. The Pennsylvania elder care lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling elder care abuse cases since 1979.

As elders become more physically frail, they are less able to stand up to “bullying” and or fight back if they are physically attacked. Seniors may not be able to see or hear as well as they could in their earlier years. Senior citizens might not also think as clearly as in the past, making it easy for unscrupulous people to take advantage. Mental or physical ailments may make it more difficult to take care of a loved one, in a care facility, or nursing home.

Elder care abuse can take many forms: physical, emotional, or sexual abuse, neglect, financial exploitation, or healthcare fraud. Physical abuse may consist of hitting, shoving, or inappropriate use of medication, restraints, or confinement. Emotional abuse such as intimidation, humiliation, or blaming is common. Emotional abuse is not limited to verbal actions, but can include nonverbal psychological abuse such as ignoring them, isolation, or terrorizing them. Sexual abuse is forceful sexual contact or other improper sexual acts. Neglect or abandonment is failure to fulfill a care-taking obligation, which are the most common reported cases of elder abuse. Neglect can be active (intentional) or passive (unintentional). Financial exploitation involves unauthorized use of an elderly person’s funds or property either by a caregiver or an outside scam artist. Financial exploitation includes: misusing personal checks, credit cards, or bank accounts; stealing cash, income checks, or household goods; forging signatures; or engaging in identity theft. Healthcare fraud and abuse can be carried out by doctors, nurses, hospital personnel, or other professional caregivers. Examples of healthcare fraud include: not providing healthcare, but charging for it; overcharging or double-billing; not following medical equipment laws; getting “kickbacks” for referrals to other medical providers or for prescribing certain drugs; over-medicating or under-medicating; recommending fraudulent remedies for illnesses or other medical conditions; or medicaid/medicare fraud.

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August 7, 2008

Slip And Fall Injuries In Pennsylvania

The Ground You Walk On May Not Be As Safe As You Thought

Slip and fall accidents are the most common type of premises liability cases and occur on a daily basis in the United States and in Pennsylvania. The very ground you walk on can be unsafe if it is not maintained properly. Tile Safe reports that slip and fall accidents account for over 20,000 deaths per year in North America and over 540,000 accidents require hospital care. The Pennsylvania slip and fall lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and successfully handling slip and fall cases since 1979.

Even the best maintained property can have problems, which can lead to serious injury. Over time, smooth surfaces can become uneven and useful items such as a drainage system can become a hazard. The three main types of accidents are: (1) trip and fall, where a foreign object or defect (like a cracked sidewalk) is the primary cause of the fall; (2) slip and fall, where there is an inconsistent grip on the floor or bottom of a shoe; and (3) step and fall, where an injury is caused by a hole or dip in the walking surface.

Slip and falls can occur anywhere and are most common at casinos, restaurants, movie theaters, public buildings, hotels, school, or houses of worship. If unsafe property caused injury the property owner could be liable for monetary damages to the injured party. To prove liability, one of the three situations must apply: (1) the property owner or employee caused the unsafe condition and the subsequent slip and fall accident (like spilling something and not cleaning it up); (2) the property owner or employee knew about the condition but did not try to correct it or warn about the unsafe condition; or (3) the property owner or employee should have known about the danger because a "reasonable person” would have found the problem and taken steps to prevent possible injuries. A "reasonable person" is someone who makes regular and thorough efforts to keep the property safe and clean under the current circumstances.

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August 6, 2008

Dram Shops and Drunk Drivers – Death From A Bottle

Driving is a privilege, not a right. Too many drivers do not take the proper responsibility to handle their motor vehicle in a safe manner. It is a sad fact that far too often a driver is intoxicated and causes an accident that results in serious injury or death to the other party. The Philadelphia auto accident attorneys at the law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and successfully handling drunk driver cases since 1979.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDot) reports that in 2005, drunk driving was responsible for 12,590 crashes, 313 of them being fatal. One alarming concern was that 22% of driver deaths between the ages of 16 to 20 (under the legal age of 21) were drunk drivers. Of the age group 21-35, 50% of driver deaths were drunk drivers. In total, 580 people died in alcohol-related crashes. On average, each day there was 36 alcohol-related traffic crashes with 1.6 people killed and 29 injured. Most alcohol-related crashes occurred between midnight and 4 AM on the weekends.

A Pennsylvania uninsured motorist accident is common, in general, but especially so for drunk drivers. Often, drunk drivers do not have insurance or not enough insurance coverage for damages. Often drunk driving could be avoided with help from others. It is always a good idea to have a designated driver and never drive after drinking. Some bars and restaurants have a breath alcohol content (BAC) machine, which will tell you if you are over the legal limit. The key to stop drunk driving is prevention; prevent someone who has had too much to drink from getting behind that wheel.

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August 5, 2008

What If I Get Involved In An Auto Accident

With An Uninsured or Underinsured Defendant?

Every state has a law that requires motorists to have some type of automobile insurance. This is known as the state minimum automobile insurance requirement. Even with strict minimum insurance laws, many drivers still do not have any insurance coverage or are underinsured. When an uninsured or underinsured motorist is involved in an accident, the lack of coverage can cause hardship for any person who suffers an injury as a result of the accident. It is up to you to have proper insurance coverage in the event that the motorist who caused your injuries is uninsured or insufficiently insured with enough coverage to properly compensate you for injuries sustained. The Pennsylvania auto accident lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling uninsured and underinsured motorist cases since 1979.

The Insurance Research Council (IRC) reports that 14% of all drivers were uninsured . Pennsylvania had a reported 9% of uninsured motorists, which is much higher now especially in the city of Philadelphia. The reason why so many drivers do not have proper insurance is economical. As economic conditions continue to deteriorate, it is likely that there will be a growing epidemic of uninsured and underinsured motorists on the roadways. Many drivers cannot afford even the minimum amount of coverage required by state law. It also costs money for the state to enforce the state minimum coverage law. Some states are starting to take action to prevent uninsured drivers on the road. In California, a new bill enacts a provision that would require drivers to register their insurance coverage or else have their license plates removed. Removing the plates will still allow a limit of how many days one could drive without a plate, but after that the vehicle will be impounded if driven without a plate. While this system may have some loopholes, it’s a step in the right direction for drivers to maintain minimum insurance coverage.

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August 3, 2008

PREVENTABLE LAWNMOWER ACCIDENTS ARE ON

THE RISE IN PENNSYLVANIA AND THE UNITED STATES

There are approximately 180,000 lawnmower accidents per year. Recently, featured on the CBS early morning news, was the case of Betty Forsythe, whose grandson suffered catastrophic injuries in Pennsylvania in a lawnmower accident. In the interview, Ms. Forsythe, of Duncannon, PA, noted that her grandson, Dylan, lost three fingers and one of his feet and stated “Children are fast, children are quick. If you are the parents or grandparents, if you are watching children, just don’t allow them to be in the same area where mowing is done”. In the same story, Dr. Scott Cozen of Shriner’s Hospital for Children, a specialist in pediatric and hand and foot surgery, indicated that he has treated dozens of children injured by lawnmowers and stated that lawnmower accidents are the number one cause of foot amputations in children nationwide. He noted that “either the child is riding on the mower with Grandpop or Dad and subsequently falls off and has a devastating injury while playing in the yard and the child is inadvertently run over. He further noted that the majority of the kids injured by lawnmowers are teenagers. Many teenagers are cutting the lawn for allowance, at which point the lawnmower gets stuck and they do something stupid such as putting their foot in, reaching their hand in and resulting in an amputation.

A lawnmower can be a dangerous machine causing catastrophic injuries and death if not used properly. Most lawnmower accidents are catastrophic with over half requiring amputations of toes, feet, legs or fingers. It is noted that the summertime is the most dangerous time for kids and lawnmowers. Apparently, children do not have an appropriate fear of power lawnmowers and with a parent mowing, they cannot hear the child running up so that even with backing up or going forward, the child can often end up under the mower.

Recently on the ABC “Good Morning America” show, the case of Henry Burmester, a 4 year old, was noted. Unfortunately, Henry Burmester‘s father accidently ran over Henry’s foot with the lawnmower. His Dad, Donald, was backing up the mower and never saw his son coming as the spinning blade hit the boy’s leg and foot. According to the report, the Burmesters began a campaign and non-profit organization called “Know Before You Mow” to alert parents and kids to the dangers of lawnmowers. It includes chilling public service announcements that demonstrate how quickly a child can run into trouble with a lawnmower.

The Pennsylvania personal injury attorneys of Reiff and Bily, we have been researching and handling product liability matters for approximately 30 years. Product liability law mandates that manufacturers have a responsibility and a legal obligation to produce safe products. Nowhere is this more important than in the manufacturing of both regular and riding lawnmowers.

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August 2, 2008

JET SKI ACCIDENTS ON THE RISE - WHO IS RESPONSIBLE?

THE INCREASING NUMBER OF DEATHS AND CATASTROPHIC INJURY

It’s summertime and more and more, emergency officials are responding to jet ski accidents throughout the United States. On July 13, 2008, emergency officials from Louisville and Howard’s Creek, Ohio responded to an accident involving at least one jet ski on the Ohio river.

On June 15, 2008, another teenager was killed on the Colorado River in Colorado when her jet ski collided with another personal water craft on the river. Over the last ten years, usage of jet skis have enjoyed a surge of popularity, adding to a growing danger on our nation's waterways. Today there are over 1 million personal water craft vessels in use in America and on average approximately 5,000 jet ski accidents occur each year resulting in 2,600 injuries in over 72 deaths. The laws relating to the operation of jet skis and the manufacture of jet skis are exceedingly complex and require an intensive knowledge of products liability, state and federal laws governing boating accidents, as well as maritime and international waterway laws.

The personal injury attorneys in Pennsylvania at the law firm of Reiff and Bily help victims recover compensation for injuries suffered in boating and jet ski accidents. At the Reiff and Bily law firm, our experience with the investigation and litigation of recreational boating and jet ski claims can give you an advantage in establishing liability against the responsible party. Common injuries associated with jet ski accidents include but are not limited to head and brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, burn injuries, hyperthermia and of course, drowning. Unfortunately, it is a fact that many inexperienced boaters are allowed to operate jet skis and personal water craft in U.S. waterways. Just think how easy it is for you to go and rent a jet ski by just presenting your credit card. The usage of the jet ski by inexperienced boaters places the lives of themselves as well as countless other people in jeopardy by reckless conduct. Along with this risk comes a host of problems related to intoxicated boaters and drunk driving accidents, collisions with other boats, water intrusion injuries, collisions with docks, piers, shorelines and swimmers and other serious injuries.

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July 30, 2008

DEFECTIVE ROAD DESIGN OR IMPROPER ROAD MAINTENANCE

MAY HAVE CAUSED YOUR ACCIDENT

Government entities such as the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation can be held liable for injuries that occur as a result of improperly maintained or designed roads. At the law offices of Reiff and Bily in Philadelphia, PA, we represent people who have been injured and the families of those who have been killed on a dangerous road in Pennsylvania, highways and streets in Philadelphia and throughout Pennsylvania.

It is very important to recover evidence and take photos before potholes are filled, trees are trimmed or guardrails added and it is important to contact an attorney as soon as possible after a car or truck accident caused by a dangerous street or highway. If a defective road or dangerous highway condition was involved in your accident, contact Philadelphia personal injury and defective road design lawyer Jeffrey Reiff today.

The Philadelphia car accident lawyers at Reiff and Bily consult traffic design experts, engineers, surveyors and accident investigators in exposing negligence on the part of a municipality and other government agencies in accidents involving dangerous roads and defective road design. Even in cases where other vehicles may strike yours, further investigation often reveals improper road conditions or lighting conditions played a role in causing an accident. When the shoulder of a road or a curve is improperly graded, when potholes are left unfilled or when stop signs are obscured by foliage, those responsible for designing and maintaining a road can be held liable when accidents occur as a result of such negligence.

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July 29, 2008

Large Truck Accidents – Hidden And Unknown Dangers Of Large Trucking Accidents

A large truck is any vehicle with a weight over 10,000 pounds. Every year in the United States, thousands of motorists and truck drivers are killed and seriously injured by the negligent and often unlawful operation of large trucks. Large trucks represent approximately 3% of all registered vehicles that are being driven in the U.S., yet they contribute to over 25% of the fatalities due to multiple vehicle auto accidents. The Pennsylvania truck accident lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling automobile and truck accident cases since 1979.

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (Penn DOT) reports that in 2005, heavy trucks were involved in 11.6% (or 173) fatal crashes out of a total of 7,321 truck crashes. Heavy trucks were more likely to hit passenger cars over any other type of vehicle with majority of crashes occurring on the highway.

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July 28, 2008

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.

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July 24, 2008

Hit-And-Run Accidents – The Fugitive Defendant

When there is a motor vehicle accident, the law requires the drivers to stop as soon as possible to exchange information, make sure everyone is okay or to determine if a victim requires medical attention, and inspect vehicle damage. Far too often after an accident, one driver flees the scene of the crime. This is known as a hit-and-run. Hit-and-runs apply to hitting an occupied or unoccupied vehicle, a piece of property, or a pedestrian and then leaving the scene without leaving or exchanging information. The Pennsylvania personal injury attorneys at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling hit-and-run claims since 1979.

Leaving the scene of the accident will warrant a ticket, but you could also be fined, have your license suspended, or even face jail time. Factors that are taken into account for sentencing are the nature of the accident, the extent of damage, personal injuries, cooperation with law enforcement, and prior criminal record. Statistics show that every year, over 1,000 people are killed due to hit-and-run accidents. If the hit-and-run driver knew that they had seriously injured or killed someone in the accident, they could be charged with felony hit-and-run or other criminal charges.

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July 23, 2008

Protect Your Precious Cargo – Keep Your Children Safely Secured In Your Vehicle

Everyone needs to get from one place to another and many people drive a car. When you’re driving and transporting children, wouldn’t you consider child car seat safety? Parents rely on child safety seats to protect their children, but it is not unusual that there could be a defect in the seat making it extremely hazardous. The Pennsylvania product liability lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling numerous defective car seat cases since 1979.

In March of 2008, Evenflo Discovery seats were being recalled due to a flaw that the child seat would fail during a side-impact crash. During testing, a ram struck the vehicle’s side at 38.5 miles an hour. The portion of the seat in which a child would be strapped in broke free of the base. The base anchors the seat to the car and the seat was thrown around the interior of the car. This was not the first time a child safety seat was recalled. In 2007, there was 11 recalls of child seats, totaling about 3.35 million seats as reported by The New York Times.

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July 17, 2008

Cosmetic Surgery – Is The Price Of Vanity and Beauty Worth The Risk Of Serious Injury Or Death?

Cosmetic surgery often presents risks that the normal consumer or patient is unaware of. In a world where beauty is overly emphasized, cosmetic surgery is far too often the answer many unaware consumers seek to resolve a problem that might not exist in the first place. Cosmetic surgery is normally marketed as a safe procedure, but if done incorrectly the consequences can be dire. All surgeries have hidden risks. The Pennsylvania medical malpractice lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling botched cosmetic surgery claims since 1979.

Cosmetic surgery has become more common over recent years as a quick panacea for self-improvement. Statistics show that there were nearly 11.7 million surgical and non-surgical cosmetic procedures performed in the United States in 2007, as reported by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS). Surgical procedures accounted for nearly 18% of the total procedures with non-surgical procedures making up 82% of the total. Surgical procedures include liposuction, breast augmentation or reduction, eyelid surgery, and abdominoplasty (tummy-tuck). Non-surgical procedures include BOTOX, hyaluronic acid, and laser hair removal. For more surgical statistics please see.

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July 16, 2008

Amusement Parks Are Not So Amusing When Rides Cause Injury Or Death

Amusement parks are meant to be a place where families could and should have fun out doors, playing games and riding on roller coasters. Most of the time when we think about amusement parks we think of “KODAK” moments of smiles and laughs with our family. Roller coasters and other rides are typically safe to ride, but that does not mean they are free from disasters. The Pennsylvania catastrophic injury lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling many amusement park accident injury and death claims since 1979.

Amusement parks are supposed to inspect their rides daily, but accidents can still occur. Sometimes the rides are outdated or in need of repair. Other times it’s a ride that is not inherently safe or becomes unsafe due to worker negligence or improper maintenance. In July of 2008, 4 people were injured in Denmark due to their roller coaster’s car came of the tracks and fell onto the cement ground below the ride. The roller coaster opened only a month prior to the accident. Even the newest of rides might cause a serious injury if improperly designed, installed, or maintained.

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July 15, 2008

LASIK Surgery – Your Sight Could Be Permanently Damaged

New technology can be a wonderful thing. Scientific and technological breakthroughs have had a major impact on the medical field and how surgeries are performed. LASIK surgery is a corrective surgery for people who want to regain better sight without the use of glasses or contacts. LASIK surgery can be very helpful, but if done improperly it can cause permanent damage and even blindness. The Pennsylvania medical malpractice lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling numerous medical malpractice cases since 1979.

LASIK or “laser-assisted in situ keratomileusis” surgery involves using a laser to cut a small flap in the eye's cornea to allow for reshaping of the corneal tissue with another laser to correct nearsightedness, farsightedness, or astigmatism. LASIK is not a new surgery, but it has not been around long enough for it to be a problem-free surgery. Long-term effects are still unknown and there are still risks to having the surgery done.

The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have received 140 reports of LASIK-related problems between 1998 and 2006 as reported by NEWSInferno. Although the FDA is reviewing complaints from LASIK patients, many have suffered from a variety of issues including blurred vision and dry eyes.

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July 11, 2008

HOW INSURANCE COMPANIES RAISE PREMIUMS

Deny Claims and Refuse Insurance to Those Who Need It The Most;
DENY DELAY and DEFEND

A recent study by the American Association for Justice (formerly The Association of Trial Lawyers of America) revealed the 10 worst insurance companies in America. To identify the worst companies for consumers, researchers at the American Association for Justice undertook a comprehensive investigation of thousands of court documents, SEC and FBI records, state insurance department investigations and complaints, news accounts from across the country and the testimony and depositions of former insurance agents and adjusters.

The 10 worst companies according to this study were:

  1. Allstate
  2. Unum
  3. AIG
  4. State Farm
  5. Conseco
  6. Wellpoint
  7. Farmers
  8. UnitedHealth
  9. Torchmark
  10. Liberty Mutual
Many insurance companies have discovered that they can make more money by simply paying out less. As a senior executive at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, the group representing those who were supposed to oversee the insurance industry it was said that “the bottom line was that insurance companies make money when they don’t pay claims”.

One example was Ethel Adams, a 60 year old woman left in a coma and seriously injured after a multi-vehicle crash in Washington state. Her insurance company, Farmers, decided that the other driver had acted intentionally and denied her claim contending that an intentional act is not an accident. Another example is Debra Potter, who for years was an agent for Unum selling Unum’s disability policy until she herself became disabled and had to stop working. All along, Ms. Potter thought she was helping other people protect their future but when her own time of need came, she was told her multiple sclerosis was “self reported” and her claim was denied by Unum, the very company whose policies she sold.

In cases like these and countless others, the name of the game is DENY, DELAY, DEFEND. Do anything, in fact, to avoid paying claims. For companies like Allstate, there are corporate training manuals explaining how to avoid payments, portable refrigerators awarded to adjusters who deny the most claims and pizza parties to shred documents.

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July 9, 2008

Home Away From Home – Hotels Carry The Same Security Dangers

While on vacation, it is not unusual to treat the hotel or motel you’re staying in as safe and secure. The truth is that hotel safety is just as important as your own home and it could be lacking proper security. Thefts can occur where you least expect it, in your private hotel room. The Pennsylvania hotel safety lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling numerous hotel theft cases since 1979.

Inadequate hotel safety comes in many forms. Besides improper door locks or access, there could be inadequate parking lot lighting or surveillance. Hotel security staff could also be negligent or improperly trained. If there is a safe in the hotel room, do not be afraid to put your valuables in there. Using a safe that only you have access to can prevent someone from stealing your wallet or jewelry left unattended. Items such as laptops are also a major target for theft.

Due to the current economy, hotels might cut back on their security that could result in a lapse of surveillance or proper protection. The burden lies on both the hotel to provide adequate security and for the guests to do their part in deterring theft. The hotel’s liability decreases if the guest is also negligent.

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July 8, 2008

Personal Trainers – Do They Go Too Far?

Fitness is essential to living a healthy life. Many people who want to work out need the proper guidance and training before using workout machines. Sometimes they just need the push a personal trainer can give them to help them reach their goals. Sometimes those personal trainers, the ones who teach and support us, can go too far. The Pennsylvania personal injury lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling many personal trainer injury cases since 1979.

Millions of people hire personal trainers to help them exercise. These trainers are supposed to be professionals in the field of training. That is not always the case. Some personal trainers are not really trained themselves. When looking for a personal trainer, make sure they know the basics such as CPR and proper machine use. Often personal trainers only have to pay a fee and pass an online course to be considered a personal trainer. Personal training to them is nothing more than a business rather than someone to help guide and educate you.

The legal standard for liability for a personal trainer is whether the trainer breached the standard of care that would be exercised by a reasonable ordinary personal trainer. In other words, doing something (or failure to do something) that a reasonable personal trainer would do (or would refrain from doing). It’s these under-qualified trainers that will push your body too hard or recommend unhealthy dietary supplements. In this way you can end up being seriously injured or suffer an herbal diet pill injury. Not every workout or exercise regimen is for everyone. Some personal trainers will keep pushing you until your body hurts or you become seriously injured. With proper training and qualifications, personal trainers could drastically reduce the possibility of injuring a client.

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July 7, 2008

Fuel-Fed Auto Fires

Getting in a car accident is dangerous enough without having to worry about the possibility of your car being engulfed in flames due to a design defect. Fuel-fed car fires are a real danger and often do more harm than the actual crash. The Pennsylvania fuel-fed fire lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling numerous automobile related injury cases since 1979.

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) reports that during 2004, fire departments responded to an estimated 266,500 highway-type vehicle fires. These fires claimed 520 lives and caused $969 million in direct property damage.

The Ford Pinto is a prime example of how a defect can result in fatalities. The defect was in the design of the strap on gas tank that made it susceptible to leakage and fire in low to moderate speed collisions. Not only did Ford know of the defect and the possibility of a fuel-fed fire, but they continued to market the Pinto. Innocent lives were lost because Ford marketed a dangerous design. Ford ended up recalling the Pintos and tried to make them safer. Additional information on the Pinto recall is available.

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July 1, 2008

Toys And Playgrounds Might Not Be As Safe As One Would Presume

Injuries to children can occur anywhere. It could happen in your house or backyard, school or day care, or even a public park. While no one can keep a child protected all the times, it is important for parents and children to become aware of the dangers that lurk in playgrounds and toys. The Pennsylvania playground accident lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling many defective toy and playground injury cases since 1979.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that in 2001 about 45% of playground-related injuries are severe (fractures, internal injuries, concussions, dislocations, and amputations) and about 75% of nonfatal injuries related to playground equipment occur on public playgrounds.

Between 1990 and 2000, 147 children ages 14 and younger died from playground-related injuries. Of them, 82 (56%) died from strangulation and 31 (20%) died from falls to the playground surface. Most of these deaths (70%) occurred on home playgrounds. Public playground climbers is the most common cause of an injury as compared to any other equipment. On home playgrounds, swings are responsible for most injuries.

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June 18, 2008

Nursing Home Abuse and Negligence – Safe or Sorry?

Nursing homes are meant to be a safe place where the elderly are taken care of by professionals who care and will treat your family members with respect. Staff members of the facility are presumed to abide to strict codes of conduct. However, that is not always the case. Some residents of nursing homes are subject to physical abuse, mental abuse, and neglect. The Pennsylvania nursing home lawyers at the Philadelphia law firm of Reiff and Bily have been researching and handling thousands of nursing home abuse and neglect cases since 1979.

CBS news reported that a congressional report in 2001 says 5,283 U.S. nursing homes, nearly one-third, have been cited for abuse. The report says more than 40%, or 3,800 abuse violations, were only reported after formal complaints from residents, their families or community advocates. Over 1,000 homes were cited for more than one abuse violation in a two-year period, 305 homes were cited for three or more abuse violations, and 192 nursing homes were cited for five or more abuse violations.

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