Philadelphia Products Liability Lawyers Report Ricon to Pay $1.75 Million for Selling Defective Wheelchair Lifts

The U.S. Department of Transportation recently slapped a penalty of $1.75 million on the Ricon Corporation for continuing to produce and sell defective wheelchair lifts, despite issuing a recall of the product.  The company had recalled 4,000 wheelchair lifts in September of 2012 because of a faulty cable that could spark and cause a fire. Even with this knowledge, Ricon continued to manufacture and sell the defective lifts through January, 2014.

According to NHTSA officials, Ricon violated the Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act when it continued to manufacture and sell its defective product.  After Ricon issued the initial recall of the defective lifts, it failed to inform NHTSA that it continued to produce, sell, and distribute the product containing the faulty cable.  Ricon ignored numerous requests from NHTSA over a six month period requesting confirmation that the defect had been corrected.  In January of 2014, the company informed NHTSA that they had mistakenly continued to manufacture and sell the defective wheelchair lift.  Failure to inform NHTSA of this mistake in a timely manner is a violation of federal safety regulations.

Department of Transportation administrators issued what they referred to as “strong enforcement action” against Ricon citing that the company failed to protect the public from an identified safety risk.  A total of 356 defective wheelchair lifts were sold after Ricon’s initial recall.  NHTSA issued a recall of these products in March of 2014.   In addition to the monetary penalty, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will increase its supervision over Ricon’s production of the wheelchair lifts to ensure that they comply with mandated policy revisions and safety improvements to prevent the problem from continuing.

Philadelphia Products Liability Lawyers at Galfand Berger, LLP Advocate for Victims Injured by Defective Equipment

Philadelphia products liability lawyers at Galfand Berger, LLP have been advocating for victims injured or killed by defective equipment for over 65 years.  Our highly skilled personal injury lawyers are committed to claiming the justice and compensation that these victims are entitled to under the law.  If you or someone you know has been injured or killed as a result of defective equipment, call us at 1-800-222-USWA, or complete our online contact form to schedule a consultation today.

Our offices are conveniently located in Philadelphia, Reading, and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania enabling us to serve clients throughout New Jersey and Pennsylvania, including those in the Harrisburg and Allentown areas.