On April 2, 2020, Manhattan Toy issued a recall for their Musical Lili Llama. According to the recall (number 20-102), the screws that are used to attach the spinning flowers to the sides of the llama toy can loosen and fall off; this poses a significant choking risk to young children. Roughly 4,000 units of the product have been affected by the recall.
The recall specifically involves the Musical Lili Llama – which is a wooden activity toy. The llama toy consists of a multi-colored metal xylophone on the top, two wooden mallets, four spinning squares on the front, a detachable maraca tail on the back, two clacking panels on the sides, and two spinning flowers on the sides (where the defect originates). On the inside of the side panel, the company name, the company address, and lot code 217120 IL can be found printed.
The defective musical llamas were sold at toy stores around the nation as well as online via www.mahattantoy.com, Amazon.com, and other websites. The toys were available from October 2019 to February 2020 for approximately $50 each.
According to the recall, there have been at least seven reports of loose screws (the screws holding the two spinning flowers) falling off the toys; there have been at least two reports of young children putting the screws into their mouths. However, it is possible that there have been a number of unreported incidents.
According to the recall, consumers affected by the defective product should take the defective toy away from children and contact the company for a free repair kit. Is the defective toy in your home? If so, should you contact the company for a repair kit? The answer to this question depends on whether your child suffered harm associated with the defective product.
As mentioned above, it is possible that there have been unreported incidents associated with the defective product – unfortunately, your child could be one of these unreported incidents. If your child was harmed as a result of the defective product, you should not simply agree to a free repair kit; rather, you should explore the possibility of pursuing a product liability claim.
If the harm that your child suffered was a direct result of a defective product, you might have grounds to pursue a product liability claim. In other words, you could potentially sue the company for the harm that your child suffered. If you would like to learn more about the possibility of taking legal again Manhattan Toy or any other company for the harm that your child suffered associated with a defective product, do not hesitate to seek legal assistance with the experts at our firm at your earliest convenience.
The product liability lawyers at Normandie Law Firm are ready to provide you with the representation that you need to hold the liable company accountable for the harm that your child suffered. At Normandie Law Firm, our lawyers have many years of experience handling all sorts of claims – including defective product claims. Our knowledgeable attorneys are ready to evaluate your claim and guide you towards a successful claim outcome. If you are ready to speak to our experts, do not hesitate to contact our firm today.
The Danger of a Choking Hazard
Musical toys are often designed for the use of young children – which are likely to put small objects into their mouths. Because of this, toys designed for young children should be free of any choking hazards. Why are small objects so dangerous to children? Let’s consider the screws that could become loose on the Musical Lili Llama toy. The screws can loosen and fall off. Not knowing what these objects are, young children could pick up the screws and place them in their mouths. The screws can potentially block the airway (the trachea). When the airway is blocked by a foreign object, air cannot flow normally – meaning that the child cannot breathe as he or she should be breathing. Because screws are relatively sharp, the screws could cause internal injuries. A child might be able to cough up to screw on their own; however, in most cases, abdominal thrusts (the Heimlich Maneuver) are necessary to dislodge the foreign object out of the trachea. Unfortunately, many children lose their lives or suffer permanent harm (including brain injuries) due to the oxygen deprivation caused by choking.
Understanding Product Liability
Did your child choke as a result of a defective product? Whether the choking resulting in injuries or the death of your young child, you might have grounds to hold the company that made the defective product available to you accountable for the harm that your child suffered. The company may be accountable based on the concept of product liability. What is product liability? Based on the concept of product liability, all companies owe their consumers a duty of care. Companies specifically have the duty to ensure that their products are safe for consumers to use. This means that companies must test and inspect their products to ensure that there are no defects in design, labeling, or manufacturing that could harm consumers. When companies fail to ensure that their products are safe, they are breaching their duty of care towards their consumers – they are making defective products available to the public and putting their consumers at risk of suffering harm. The breach of duty can ultimately result in an incident (such as a young child choking) which could lead to harm.
Whenever a consumer is harmed as a direct result of a defective product, the company could be liable based on the concept of product liability. What does this mean? If a company is liable based on product liability, affected consumers could take legal action against the company – that is, they could sue the company.
Could You Recover Compensation?
You could sue based on product liability. You might also be eligible to recover monetary compensation for the harm that you suffered. However, you could only be compensated if your claim reaches a successful outcome. How much compensation could you be eligible to receive? What type of compensation could you be awarded? The type and amount of compensation that you could be eligible to recover will always depend on the details surrounding your claim and could include some of the following:
- Medical expenses
- Lost income
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of consortium
- Funeral and burial damages
- Punitive damages
For more information about the type and amount of compensation that you could be eligible to receive if your defective product claim reaches a successful outcome, do not hesitate to contact our law firm at your earliest convenience. Our lawyers are ready to aggressively fight for your right to recover the highest amount of compensation available for your claim. There is no doubt that the recovery of monetary compensation cannot and will not reverse the harm that your child suffered. However, it can help you and your family move forward from such a traumatic event.
What Should You Do?
Although being harmed by defective products is common, consumers generally do not know what they should do after being harmed. Therefore, they do not follow the necessary steps and unknowingly decreas e their chances of being able to sue. What should you do if your or your child suffered harm because of a defective product? You should consider following the steps listed below:
- Seek medical attention immediately
- Take photos of any visible harm (i.e. any visible color changes on your child’s skin due to the choking, etc.)
- Take photos of the defective product
- Contact the company to report the defective product and the harm suffered
- Do not agree to a free repair (or free repair kit)
- Do not agree to a free replacement
- Do not agree to a refund
- Do not agree to return the defective product
- Gather all relevant medical records
- Gather documents that show proof of purchase (receipts, email confirmations, etc.)
- Seek legal assistance immediately
By following these recommendations, affected parties are essentially preparing to take legal action. For more information about the importance of following these steps, do not hesitate to contact our firm at your earliest convenience.
The Statute of Limitations
All claims are subject to a strict deadline established by a statute of limitations; if claims are not filed within the appropriate length of time, claimants will lose their right to sue. In California, product liability claims are typically subject to a two-year statute of limitations, meaning that claimants only have two years to pursue their claims. However, it is also important to be aware that exceptions to the applicable deadline. For instance, in cases involving injuries to young children, the statute of limitations is tolled until the victim reaches eighteen-years-old. To ensure that you have a thorough understanding of the deadline that applies to your claim, do not hesitate to seek legal assistance at your earliest convenience.
Contact Our Firm Today
If you are ready to take action against Manhattan Toy or any other company that contributed to the harm that your child suffered, do not hesitate to contact our firm at your earliest convenience. At Normandie Law Firm, our lawyers are ready to aggressively fight for your right to hold these negligent companies accountable for the harm that you and your family suffered. Our lawyers are ready to provide you with the representation that you need to take legal action and fight for your right to recover monetary compensation.
At Normandie Law Firm, our lawyers are ready to aggressively fight for your rights as a consumer. We are dedicated to providing you with all the information that you need to hold the negligent company accountable for the harm that you suffered. Our firm offers free legal services, which include free consultations and free second opinions. During these free legal services, our lawyers will be available to answer all your questions and address all your concerns; you can be certain that our product liability lawyers will provide you with all the information that you need to hold the company accountable and recover the compensation that you are owed. Would you like to benefit from these free legal services? If so, do not hesitate to contact our firm at your earliest convenience.
Our firm also offers a Zero-Fee guarantee that ensures that our clients will not pay any upfront legal fees for any of our legal services. Our firm also offers a strict contingency structure, meaning that our clients will not be required to pay anything until after reaching a successful claim outcome. In other words, you will not pay until you win. To learn more about your right to sue and to start your legal process, do not hesitate to contact our law firm today.
