Buggy Company Maclaren Agrees Personal Injury Compensation For Injured UK Youngsters

Posted in: Featured,Headline,Public Liability News by Rav.sandhu   |   0 Comment
11
May

buggyUK buggy manufacturer Maclaren has agreed personal injury compensation for over 40 UK children who had their fingers, allegedly, seriously injured in the hinges of its folding pushchairs, in some cases losing tips of fingers.

The compensation agreement follows a long-running compensation claims saga which began in late 2009 when Maclaren recalled one million products in the US after reports of injuries to children there.

The firm, a respected and longstanding UK manufacturer of baby and toddler buggies insisted at the time that UK buggies were not affected and a UK recall did not taken place, however similar reports of injuries began to emerge in the UK, allegedly, as a result of Maclaren buggies’ folding and hinge systems. Hinge covers are now available for UK customers but consumers must request them via the firm’s website.

Although refusing to admit liability, Maclaren has agreed personal injury compensation with the aid of its insurers and have agreed to make full compensation damages awards. The individual amounts are dependent on the severity of injuries in each personal injury case and the money will be invested until the children reach age 18.

Solicitor Richard Langton, who has been leading the group litigation, a senior litigation partner at legal firm Russell Jones & Walker, said; “We are delighted to get the agreement within three months of being instructed to act, and it proves the adult opening the buggy is not in any way at fault but compensation does not turn the clock back for the traumatised children or their parents”. “Millions of buggies remain in use and despite claims from Maclaren that there are insufficient cases in the UK to warrant a recall, injuries still occur. What all my clients want is that no one else suffers needless injury.”

The compensation cases all involve children hurt when aged between one and eight years old with some cases dating back to 2003. Many amputated part of the last finger joint when the buggy was erected, undergoing operations under general anaesthetic to try to re-attach the joint or perform a skin graft.

Others injuries resulting in the personal injury compensation payouts include fractured bones and deep lacerations, leaving scars and in some cases permanent loss of feeling or disfigurement.

Some children had the whole or part of their finger amputated. Further surgery in teenage years is an option for those with disfigurement. The Maclaren buggies fold and open with the use of hinge mechanisms.

UK personal injury lawyer Richard Langton, of Russell Jones & Walker, adds: “Any injury from a pushchair’s folding mechanism may get compensation”. There are cases involving other makes too. ”Manufacturers need to know there is a serious issue which must be addressed with more decisive action. It is time the authorities stepped in and did something here as they did in America.”

When the US news story broke last year the Maclaren brand image was undermined after it recalled a million buggies in the US, following reports that children’s fingers had been injured. Hundreds of people contacted the BBC and other UK media about their Maclaren buggies, with more than 40 parents alleging their children had suffered serious injuries in Maclaren buggy mechanisms.

The recently announced agreed compensation awards for the UK families are estimated at between £2,500 and £10,000 per child, depending on the severity of the personal injuries.

The US cases involved amputations happening when children placed their finger in the hinge while the pushchair, or stroller, was being unfolded. The US recall involved all Maclaren single and double umbrella pushchair buggies, including the following: Volo, Triumph, Quest Sport, Quest Mod, Techno XLR, Twin Triumph, Twin Techno, Techno XT and Easy Traveller, many of which were popular models in the UK as well.

In its defence McLaren points out that more than a million buggies in the past decade in the UK have been sold and the company have only received around 100 complaints. The company wishes to point out that this safety issue affects the whole buggy industry and not exclusively Maclaren, a point echoed by The Baby Products Association (BPA) which has issued an official statement on Maclaren’s safety record: “Our immediate concern is with the well being of those families who have been involved in an accident. The BPA believes it is important for parents and carers to have a clear understanding of the issues surrounding product safety, the responsibilities of our members in producing safe products as well as those of parents in their correct operation.”

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