food-processor-recall-400-07820538d-200x300Conair Corp. last month recalled about eight million Cuisinart brand food processors just as home cooks were putting the machines to work chopping, grating and mixing food in preparation for the Christmas and Hanukkah holidays. The recall, which involves the stainless steel riveted blades in Cuisinart food processors sold nationwide between July 1996 and December 2015, came after the company received more than 65 complaints from consumers who found pieces of broken blades in food that had been processed with these machines. About 30 of those complaints included reports of cuts to the mouth and tooth injuries.

The sheer number of machines affected makes this one of the three largest appliance recalls ever in America. Consumers were urged to stop using their food processors and contact Cuisinart for a replacement blade. However the timing of the recall, coupled with the fact that homemakers could have had the food processors in their kitchens for more than 20 years, caused some consumers to decide to keep a careful eye on their holiday food preparation rather than participate in the recall. If you own a Cuisinart food processor and want to see if it is affected by this recall, read “8M Cuisinart Food Processors Recalled Over Laceration Hazard.”

Photo of driver yawning behind the wheel of carThis time of year it is not uncommon for people to push through to accomplish everything on their to-do lists, even when that means sacrificing some sleep. But depriving yourself of the recommended amount of sleep can have serious consequences, especially for drivers.

A recent study by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety revealed that missing even two or three hours of sleep in a night increases your risk of an accident by four times over a driver who has gotten the recommended amount of sleep. It’s tantamount to driving drunk, yet one out of every 25 drivers admitted to driving drowsy when surveyed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. To learn more about how sleep deprivation can affect your driving, read “Driving while drowsy can be more dangerous than thought.”

Photo of man fastening seat belt over his lapThere’s truth behind the slogan, ‘Seat Belts Save Lives.’ In fact, last year alone seat belts were credited with saving some 14,000 lives. At the same time, however, these safety harnesses can contribute to the injuries drivers and passengers suffer as a result of motor vehicle accidents.

Part of the problem, according to researchers, is that seat belts essentially are designed to restrain middle-aged males, and the force they use could be too strong for smaller passengers, particularly women and older people. While these researchers encourage all drivers and passengers to continue using seat belts, there is one professor at Ohio State University’s School of Medicine, on a crusade to see improvements that would allow seat belts to adjust to the individual person. To learn more, read “When seat belts pose a safety hazard.”

accidental-poisoning-400-05670556dInjury is the leading cause of death of children and teenagers in this country and accidental poisonings rank among the top five leading causes of injury. Most of these poisonings occur when children accidentally ingest medications or common household cleaners.

Young children are particularly susceptible to this type of injury because they often experiment by putting things in their mouths. But even older children are at risk if they ingest a dangerous substance that isn’t clearly marked. This was the case recently in New Jersey when two children, in totally separate incidents, ingested industrial-strength cleansers that had been stored in an unmarked container. See, “Poison alert: cleaning product landed 2 …”

To learn how to prevent incidents like this from happening in your home, read the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s “Tips to Prevent Poisonings.”

personal-injury-400-06135599d
Personal Injury attorney, Victor Rotolo, and the attorneys of the Victor Rotolo Law Firm offer legal counsel to clients seeking to recover damages for injuries suffered as the result of accidents, including those related to defective products, accidental falls, and workplace mishaps.

Collecting damages for injuries you suffered as a result of another person’s negligence encompasses more than simply pointing the finger of blame. Laws governing personal injury cases vary by state. In New Jersey, those laws determine when you can file your claim, which injuries qualify for a personal injury lawsuit, and the type and amount of damages you can expect to collect.

When to File a Personal Injury Lawsuit

dwi-lawsuit-400-07662288dSince a Supreme Court ruling in 2008, breath tests have been admissible in court as proof of a driver’s impairment in a DWI case. However, certain criteria must be met in administering these tests for the results to be considered valid evidence. It is these criteria that are the basis of a federal class action lawsuit that could result in more than 20,000 New Jersey DWI convictions being overturned.

For the results of a breath test to be admissible in court, the device used to measure a suspect’s blood alcohol content (BAC) must be in working order and appropriately inspected at the time of the test; the person administering the test must be a certified operator; and the test must be administered according to procedure.

The lawsuit, which was filed in federal district court in New Jersey last month, claims that a New Jersey State Police sergeant failed to properly recalibrate devices that potentially were used to administer breath tests in more than 20,000 DWI cases in five different counties throughout New Jersey. In addition to unspecified damages and court costs, the suit seeks to have a review of all DWI cases that may have involved the sergeant in order to determine if any of the convictions should be reversed. To learn more, read “20,000 DWI cases called into question in NJ: Is yours one of them?

teen-driverrs-400-05083531dA recent report from the Governors Highway Safety Association revealed that the country has seen an almost 10 percent increase in fatal car accidents among teenage drivers this past year except in New Jersey where such accidents have actually declined. Could New Jersey’s graduated drivers’ license (GDL) program be the reason?

While all states have some sort of GDL program for teens, New Jersey’s system has some strict requirements. For one thing, any driver between the ages of 16 and 20 must first hold a learner’s permit before getting a probationary license that will last for at least one year. Elsewhere in the country, teens can opt out of their state’s GDL program by age 18. To learn more about how New Jersey’s GDL may be saving teen lives, read “More teens are dying behind the wheel – how NJ’s bucking the trend.”

social-media-PI-400-06419843dIt has been estimated that more than three-quarters of adults who use the Internet are actively engaged on social media. It can be an efficient way to keep in touch with a number of people, near and far but, if you’re involved in a personal injury claim, you may want to be careful about what you post. Even the most innocuous comments could come back to haunt you.

The idea behind a personal injury lawsuit is to attempt to recover damages resulting from medical expenses, lost wages and even pain and suffering, which can manifest itself in depression, anxiety and, in some cases, isolation. While it might be a natural instinct for someone laid up with an injury to reach out to friends and family through social media in an effort to pass the time, the content of their posts could actually be used against them in court. To learn more, read “Could Social Media Impact Your Personal Injury Claim?

driverless cars: photo of two men and a woman looking at two cars involved in crashIt has been predicted that by the year 2020 there will be some 10 million driverless cars on the roads. In preparation for this, the auto industry has been including such features as park assist and crash avoidance technologies on more and more vehicles in recent years. While drivers adjust to the thought of relinquishing all navigational control to their vehicles, the government is grappling with some practical matters that the new fully-automated vehicle technology will bring.

The Department of Transportation recently released new policies aimed at balancing safety with this new technological advancement. These policies address such issues as how to assess a vehicle’s crashworthiness, how to prevent hacking of the automated systems; and how to cope with a system failure. To learn more, read “Department of Transportation Releases Policy on Driverless Vehicles.”

Meanwhile, insurers and lawyers both are dealing with the question of responsibility in the event of accidents involving driverless cars. For more on this, read “Who’s Responsible for Self-Driving Car Accidents?

phone-batteries-400-06177414dThese days it seems almost everyone is attached to their smart phones. Not only do these devices keep us connected to colleagues, friends and family, they also provide access to a wealth of information with the touch of a finger. Along with all the advantages these mobile devices offer, there are risks -and not only those risks associated with distracted driving.

Samsung, a leading manufacturer of cell phones, recently launched a major recall of the Galaxy Note 7 due to a defective battery. According to reports, the batteries in this particular smart phone are at risk of exploding due to a “manufacturing process error.” There have yet to be reports of injuries stemming from these battery explosions, although investigators are looking into a possible connection between the battery problem and two massive fires (see “Samsung’s recalled Galaxy Note 7 blamed for Jeep and garage fires”). Even the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is getting involved by asking customers to not pack these phones into checked baggage and to refrain from turning them on or charging them in flight. For further details, read “FAA Issues Warning About Samsung Phones …”

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