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Part One in a series of posts about product defects by SLN partner Andrew Nebenzahl
Every day, consumers use dozens of products, trusting that they
are safe and will function as they are supposed to. Often they do. But
sometimes the products have a hidden, dangerous defect that cause serious
injuries or death. And sometimes
manufacturers keep those dangerous defects secret from consumers until long
after these injuries have occurred. Recent media coverage of several consumer
product defects, such as exploding air bags or failed ignition switches in
cars, has exposed a breakdown in the system tasked with safeguarding people and
keeping dangerous products off the market. This is the first in a series of
posts aimed at providing you with information on defects you may not be aware
of.
The spotlight
has recently been aimed at several massive cover-ups. In the world of
automobile defects, we learned that General Motors kept an ignition switch
defect—which turned the engine off, leaving drivers without power steering,
power brakes, and airbags—secret for 13 years, causing possibly hundreds of
deaths and more than a thousand injuries.
Exploding Takata airbags that could hurl metal shards at vehicle
occupants after even a minor accident also made international news. Again, Honda
Motor Corp. and the airbag manufacturer, Takata, knew of this undisclosed
defect for years before they took steps to recall the vehicles. And Trinity
Industries, which makes many of the guardrails lining our nation’s highways,
came under fire for changing the size of the end cap at the end of the rail
without telling federal regulators. It turned out the new design allowed the guardrail
to impale a vehicle and its occupants and was almost four times more likely to
be involved in a fatal crash than its predecessor.
The roadways
are not the only place where defects can lurk—some of the products in your own
home may be dangerous without you realizing it. Many electronic toys, flash
lights, watches, and car key fobs on which we rely every day run on button cell
batteries. Although the nickel-sized lithium batteries look innocuous, they are
extremely harmful if a child swallows one and it gets lodged in the throat or
esophagus. More than 3,000 children visit emergency rooms annually for injuries
such as airway obstruction, esophagus perforation, vocal cord paralysis, and
gastrointestinal bleeding. Children are also in danger if they swallow one of
the high-powered, ball-shaped magnets found in toys, science kits, and desk
games like Buckyballs. When multiple magnets are swallowed, they attract each
other, pinching the intestinal wall between them, causing holes in intestinal
tissues and stomach linings. Even your appliances may not be
safe—refrigerators, dishwashers, dehumidifiers, and other appliances have all
been recalled for defective wiring that caused fires.
Most consumers
never know that products used everyday are subject to a recall and could be
dangerous for themselves or their children. Manufacturers know that the number
of people who return their products in a recall is low and that many stores,
including major retailers, will continue to sell them long after a recall has
been issued. We will continue to update
this series from time to time to keep consumers informed about dangerous
products and "what they don't want you to know." In the meantime, you
can always check the updated list of recalls at the Consumer Product Safety
Commission website here: http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Recalls/
