STIHL PolyCut mowing heads exploded on trimmers, brush cutters and certain models of clearing saws. The bolts connecting the plastic blades and holding the mowing head together loosen and the mowing head disintegrates causing serious personal injuries to users and bystanders. Approximately 73,000 units are being recalled. Currently, this defective product recall includes mowing head […]
Product Liability / Defective Products
Chrysler ABS Brake Recall And Buy Back
On April 15, 1996, Chrysler Corporation, facing a barrage of consumer complaints, a government investigation and a class action lawsuit, agreed to fix 275,000 1991-93 minivans [Caravan C-V, Dodge Caravan, Grand Voyager, and Town and Country], 67,000 Chrysler New Yorkers, Imperials and Dynasties, and 4,000 1991-92 Earle Premier and Dodge Monacos with Bendix ABS brakes […]
Prescription Drugs That Kill: Another Kind Of Drug Problem
RACHEL’S ENVIRONMENT & HEALTH WEEKLY By Peter Montague, Editor A medical report in 1998 estimated that adverse reactions to prescription drugs are killing about 106,000 Americans each year — roughly three times as many as are killed by automobiles.[1] This makes prescription drugs the fourth leading killer in the U.S., after heart disease, cancer, and […]
Hepatitis C From Gammagard ®, An Intravenous Immunoglobulin [IGIV]
In February, 1994 Baxter Healthcare Corporation withdrew from world markets Gammagard®, an immunoglobulin administered intravenously to those with acquired or congential immune disorders, after 112 people in the U.S. were reported having symptoms of hepatitis C, the most fatal form of the this liver disease. Also withdrawn at the same time was a companion drug, […]
Ending Secrecy In Defective Product Litigation: New Federal Reporting Rule For Consumer Products
Manufacturers of consumer products, as of January 1, 1991, are required to report to the Consumer Product Safety Commission settlements in cases involving “grievous bodily injury or death” caused by defective products. The new legislation, 15 U.S. C. 2084, is an important advancement for consumers, since former regulations were vague and easily avoided. Previous rules […]