The hum of lawnmowers, like tulips and greening trees, can herald the arrival of Spring. But using a lawnmower with an unsafe plastic rear guard could mean missing out on sunshine while recovering from a serious injury.
That was the experience for Kathy Mascola, who suffered an infected spiral fracture to her leg, along with back injuries, when a small stone rocketed through the plastic guard on her Sears lawnmower and slammed into her leg.
The plastic rear guard on her 6.5 hp “Eager 1” was intended to prevent such accidents. Unfortunately, the guard was made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC), which becomes weak and brittle over time. An attorney for Ms. Mascola, G. Martin Meyers, called the gradual degradation to the guard “invisible damage.” According to attorneys, the manual failed to mention the damage was invisible, so there was no way Mrs. Mascola and her husband James would know that it needed to be replaced.
Last year, a Federal jury in Newark New Jersey awarded Mrs. Mascola and her husband, James, $500,000, finding that Sears Roebuck failed to adequately warn the lawnmower owners of this hidden danger.
If you or anyone you know has been injured due to failure of plastic rear guard, please contact Sheller, P.C. at 1-800-883-2299.
The Legal Examiner and our Affiliate Network strive to be the place you look to for news, context, and more, wherever your life intersects with the law.
Comments for this article are closed.