Archive for the 'Defective products' Category

In excess of 6,000 people in the UK are admitted to hospital each year suffering allergic reactions, many of which are as a result of using cosmetics and hair dyes.

Baroness Finlay has recently expressed concern at the general lack of medical expertise in tackling allergies, and she recommended that the Government take remedial action.  However, leading national charity Allergy UK has pointed out that the same issues were highlighted in 2004, but nothing was done about them.

Since the 1930s people who have experienced allergic reactions to hair dyes have been making personal injury compensation claims.  The basis of such claims is often the negligence of the hairdresser in failing to follow the instructions for using the particular product.  This results in injury to their client’s hair and scalp, which can sometimes be severe and lead to extreme trauma.

To avert the possibility of a flood of claims for personal injury compensation, Canadian manufacturer Megabrands has recalled its MagnaMan and Magtastik toys.  This follows 19 reports of magnets coming loose from the action figures and harming children.  Worldwide approximately 2.4 million products have been recalled, including 110,000 MagnaMan and 170,000 Magtastik toys sold in the UK between January 2005 and December 2007.

In a similar move US toymaker Mattel recalled more than 18 million toys worldwide in August 2007.  In this case it was discovered that the paint used in the Chinese-made “Sarge” die-cast toys from the Pixar film Cars contained lead, rendering them potentially harmful.

Mattel has also recalled other toys – including Polly Pocket, Batman Magna, Doggie Daycare and One Piece play sets – which contained small magnets that might come loose, even though there have been no reports of an accident caused by these products.

Claims for personal injury compensation are being made by 100s of people who have bought sofas and suites from Argos stores and have since developed painful skin irritations and rashes.  These skin conditions appear to have been caused by direct contact with the sofas and suites sold.

Tests have been carried out by consultant dermatologists and the most likely source of the problems are items of furniture bought from Argos during 2007 that appear to have been made in China and were sold under the names of Pia or Bari.

Sufferers have described a number of symptoms, including the appearance of a rash or other blemishes on their backs, and have sometimes become aware of lumps under the skin that have caused additional stress and anxiety.  Diagnosis usually follows a visit to the GP or hospital and in many cases the remedy is straight forward.  However, the sufferer may be left with permanent scars.