Search & Navigate                    Glossary                    Congress                    Resources & Videos                    About                    
(2024-Aug-01)
(2015-Jul-29)
(2015-May-19)
(2015-Apr-21)
(2014-Sep-14)
(2014-Mar-31)
DID YOU JUST LEARN SOMETHING?
Is it worth a dollar?
News in FiVe is free to read, but it takes time and money to publish.
If you find what we do valuable, please help us continue with a small donation every so often. Even a dollar or three makes a difference.
In return, we'll keep providing you the most relevant, understandable, and accessible news and information.
It's secure and takes only about a minute.
Thanks!
2024-Aug-01  (Updated: 2024-Sep-15) | By: Barry Shatzman |
The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled that chicken advertised as boneless does not need to be boneless.
The case involved then-58-year-old Michael Berkheimer, who, in 2016, swallowed a 1-1/2 inch bone from the boneless wings he ordered at a restaurant. It became stuck in his esophagus and became infected - damaging his heart and lungs. He required two surgeries and still suffers from the effects.
In the 4-3 decision, Judge Patrick DeWine said, "Most people know that chickens - there aren't such things as chickens without bones out there."
DeWine described the term boneless as a "cooking style," rather than a "guarantee."
The majority decision affirmed a lower court's ruling. That ruling, however, was decided by summary judgment. It never reached a jury.
Dissent - victim was denied jury trial
Berkheimer had claimed negligence against the restaurant, the restaurant's supplier, and the entity that raised and sold the chicken.
In his dissent, Judge Michael Donnelly wrote that the summary judgment denied Berkheimer his right to present evidence and to have a jury determine who might have been negligent.
"The majority's decision ossifies one factor as the rule and declares that if a substance is 'natural' to a food product, a consumer who is injured while eating the product has no recourse regardless of how negligent the supplier or provider of the product might have been," Donnelly wrote.
Donnelly responded to DeWine's assertion that no person would conclude that boneless guarantees the absence of bones.
"Actually, that is exactly what people think," he wrote. "That is among the reasons they feed such items to young children."
Donnelly compared the situation to food labeled to be free of lactose, gluten, or nuts - yet which might contain those ingredients.
"People can die under some of those circumstances, and this court would point to the decision in this case and say that lactose and gluten and nuts are natural to foods, so there is no possible way that a defendant who processed or wholesaled or served them could have been negligent," he wrote.
Click here to read the court's decision.
2015-Jul-29 | By: Barry Shatzman |
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has imposed record fines against Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles for recall violations.
As part of the agreement, the automaker admitted to violating federal rules about recalls affecting 11 million vehicles. Violations included not notifying consumers, dealers, and regulators.
Recalls included more than 500,000 vehicles with faulty suspensions that could cause the driver to lose control. Owners of these vehicles will be allowed to sell them back to Fiat-Chrysler. Owners of more than a million Jeeps that are prone to catch fire will be able to trade them in for above the market value or receive compensation if they get their vehicle repaired.
The company will notify affected owners.
Fiat-Chrysler will pay a $70 million cash fine. They also must spend at least $20 million to remedy the violations. If more violations are discovered, the company could be liable for an additional $15 million in fines.
The NHTSA may impose a fine of $35 million for any recall that is not completed in a timely manner.
For more, read the NHTSA announcement.
2015-May-19 | By: Barry Shatzman |
More than 10 percent of all cars in the U.S. are being recalled because their airbags could explode when they deploy - and blast shrapnel throughout the car.
The defective airbags were made by the Japanese company Takata. This is the first time a recall has been directed toward the maker of a particular part. Recalls in the past have been directed toward car manufacturers.
The problem has been known since at least 2000. The first death related to the defective airbags is believed to have occurred in 2009. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened an investigation into the airbags in 2009, but ended it after 6 months saying there was "insufficient evidence".
Cars from virtually every manufacturer are affected, though most manufacturers are saying they still are determining which cars should be included and what action to take.
If your car does have one of the defective airbags, it still might be years before it's made safe. For one thing, Takada and car manufacturers haven't fully identified all of the cars that are affected. For another, it will take time before tens of millions of replacement airbags can be produced.
And there's one more thing. Takata still has not determined exactly what's causing the problem. So nobody is saying for sure that the new airbags won't have a similar issue.
For more, read the New York Times story.
To read more about the NHTSA's history of lax enforcement on this and other car safety issues, read the Lobby99 story below.
You can find out if your car is affected, as well as learn more as new information becomes available, at www.SaferCar.gov.
2015-Apr-21 | By: Barry Shatzman |
Bicycle maker Trek is recalling 900,000 bikes in the United States made since September 1999. The front wheel release lever can come into contact with the disc brake, causing the bike to stop suddenly or the wheel to come off.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CSPC) reports at least three serious injuries caused by this problem - including one rider becoming permanently paralyzed.
The bikes being recalled are those in which the lever can open more than 180 degrees. Models affected are years 2000 - 2015, and the bikes ranged in cost from $480 to $1,650.
The CSPC is urging those with affected bikes to not ride them until they are repaired. Owners can contact an authorized Trek retailer for a free repair.
For more, read the Consumer Product Safety Commission report.
2014-Sep-14 | By: Barry Shatzman |
The federal agency responsible for ensuring the safety of automobiles has failed to fully investigate and act on major safety issues, the New York Times has reported.
Problems have included rollovers in Ford Explorers, ignition defects in General Motors cars, sudden acceleration in Toyotas, fires in Jeep fuel tanks, and air bag ruptures. They have been linked to several deaths.
In spite of that, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) routinely ignored both its own data and complaints from car owners. The agency - which also rates the safety of cars - awarded some of these cars its highest safety rating.
For more, read the New York Times report.
2014-Mar-31  (Updated: 2014-Nov-27) | By: Barry Shatzman |
By 2018 all new cars will come equipped with cameras that allow the driver to see what is behind the car, the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced on March 31.
The intent of the regulation is to save lives. About 15,000 people are injured each year by a car backing into them - more than 200 fatally. About half of those are children under 5 years old and adults over 70, according to the NHTSA. The agency estimates that more than 50 lives will be saved every year once all cars are equipped with rear-view cameras.
The requirement actually is not new. It was part of the 2007 Cameron Gulbransen Kids Transportation Safety Act - named after a 2-year-old child who was killed when his father backed into him in the family SUV. The regulation was supposed to take effect in 2011, but was repeatedly delayed by the Department of Transportation.
To read the NHTSA report, click here.
* Update 2014-Nov-27 *
Car manufacturers are looking into replacing all mirrors with cameras. Cameras would provide a clear image in otherwise tough conditions - such as sunrise or sunset, or when the car behind has its high beams turned on. Replacing side mirrors with cameras also would make the car more aerodynamic.
For more, read the IOL Motoring story.