Blades Of Summer
The sounds of synchronized mowing as your neighbors partake in the weekly ritual of lawn care means fresh cut grass and summer fun. Unfortunately, the act of mowing can lead to injuries and trips to the emergency room.
Keeping lawns perfectly manicured is a way of life for some. The blades of grass cannot be more than 3 inches tall or the yard needs cut again. And for some persnickety people the art of grass cutting can become more than a weekly affair. I bet some of your neighbors seem to be glued to their mower and are out daily maintaining their yard.
So why do I bring up lawn care? And how is it that the act of mowing could land people in the ER?
Well, back in my youth, the motorized push mowers that I used to use had absolutely zero safety protocols. No warning stickers. No quick release mechanisms. None of it. You basically added oil, gas, and pulled the crank to start the motor. Then you’d push the mower across the yard to trim the grass.
Nowadays, push mowers have quick release bars that when let go automatically shut off the engine and the spinning blade under the deck. And riding mowers have sensors in the seats that when the rider stands up or disembarks from the machine it turns off. These safety features are designed to keep users safe.
In reality those safety features came about as a result of numerous lawsuits lodged against manufacturers for injuries caused to consumers by their products.
But what happens when those safety protocols fail to work the way they are designed? People get hurt, simple as that. Under the mower deck is a sharp spinning metal blade that is designed to cut through grass, twigs, small branches and yes, even human bone. So when fingers, hands or feet come in contact with that fast moving blade…it’s not a pretty sight.
Watch the video… (it’s only about 20 seconds long)
The video showcases a one year old push mower where the safety release bar stopped working. When the bar is released the engine is supposed to turn off. It doesn’t. This creates a safety hazard for the user. Suppose the user slips and falls to the ground and the running mower rolls over the person’s hands severing fingers. Had the safety release bar actually worked the engine would shut off preventing the mower from injuring the user’s extremities.
When safety features such as release bars and sensors fail to work they are considered product liabilities.
Products liability law involves the legal theories of strict liability, negligence, breach of warranty, fraud, misrepresentation, and violation of the deceptive trade practice laws. From a consumer standpoint, these cases generally concern whether appropriate warnings were given to users or consumers of products. Also involved are issues with placement of warnings, appropriate content for operating equipment manuals, appropriate design requirements, necessity for inspection or testing, compliance with statutes and regulations, and determination of recall or retrofit advisability.
On a daily basis we are working to help someone injured as a result of a defective product.
Product liability claims often involve heavy industrial equipment, tractors, bulldozers, cranes, lift trucks, oil field equipment, scaffolding, kitchen equipment, tires, pharmaceuticals, smoke detectors, medical supplies, bottling equipment, packaging equipment, chemicals and glues, fertilizers, tobacco products, automotive equipment, camping equipment, ski equipment, ski lift equipment, textiles, hand tools, consumer products, bicycles, surgical equipment, blood products, and food.
If you or a loved one has been injured by a product and that injury occurred in Indiana, pick up the phone and call the Law Offices of David W Holub today at +1 (219) 736-9700.
[tweetthis]We fight for truth every day.[/tweetthis]