Lemon Law for California

Build Dates : November 01, 2005 - August 31, 2007

NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number : 08V545000

Date Owner’s Notified:
Date Received by ODI: 20081017
Date Added to Databse: 20081017

Manufacturer’s Involved: COLUMBIA NORTHWEST, INC.
Manufacturer’s Responsible for the Recall: COLUMBIA NORTHWEST, INC.
Manufacturer Campaign Number:

Component: EQUIPMENT:RECREATIONAL VEHICLE
Potential Number Of Units Affected : 65

Summary: 

Columbia is recalling 65 my 2006-2007 retreat (22′ and 32′) travel trailers equipped with a two-door refrigerator manufactured by the dometic corporation. The refrigerator may have a defect in the boiler tube. Pressurized coolant solution could be released into an area where an ignition source (gas flame) is present.

Consequence: 

Release of coolant under certain conditions could ignite and result in a fire.

Remedy: 

Columbia will be working with dometic in order to repair these refrigerators (please see 08e032). Dometic will repair these refrigerators by installing a secondary burn housing, a thermal fuse, and a melt fuse free of charge. Dometic has retained stericycle inc. To manage this campaign. Stericycle will assist the owner in locating dealerships or service centers and will provide assistance with scheduling of appointments. 

The four main ways in which a manufacturer can be found to be at fault in a product liability claim are:

    * Manufacturing

      If contamination has occurred in a factory or a batch of products has been damaged during the manufacturing process and the quality control procedure has not identified this and you have suffered injury as a result, the manufacturer is likely to be liable.

    * Design

      If a product is poorly designed, such as a toy that has very sharp edges or a kettle that allows steam to escape around the handle, and you have sustained an injury as a result, you can make a product liability claim against the manufacturer.

    * Warnings

      If a manufacturer fails to exhibit sufficient warnings on a product that is inherently dangerous, such as an electrical appliance, or a salesman has downplayed the warnings on such an item, then the company may well be found to be liable if you are injured as a result.

    * Failure to recall/announce warnings

      If a manufacturer discovers a problem with a product that could cause personal injury and fails to announce warnings about the product and injury occurs as a result, a product liability claim could well be successful, if you are injured by the product.

It is particularly important that the solicitor you choose to represent you has specialist knowledge of product liability law because this type of personal injury case can sometimes be extremely complex.

A “defect” does not mean mere lack of quality of the product, but means lack of safety in the product which may cause the injury to life, body, or property. In the law, the term “defect” is defined as “lack of safety that the product ordinarily should provide,” taking into account “the nature of the product”, “the ordinarily foreseeable manner of use of the product”, “the time when the manufacturer, etc. delivered the product”, and other circumstances concerning the product. These three above-mentioned circumstances include such respective factors, as are presented below. In the actual trial, while the weight of each factor is different depending on individual cases, these factors are comprehensively taken into account in judging whether the product is defective or not.

Meaning of “the nature of the product” This means the circumstances of the product itself, including factors such as the following: representation of the product (instructions, warnings, etc. to prevent accidents) effectiveness and usefulness of the product (compared to its danger) cost vs. effect (the safety standard of products in the same price range) probability of occurrence of accident and its extent ordinary use period and durable period of the product Meaning of “the ordinarily foreseeable manner of use of the product” This means the circumstances concerning use of the product, including factors such as the following reasonably foreseeable use of the product possibility of preventing damage from occurring by the product user Meaning of “the time when the manufacturer, etc. delivered the product” This means the circumstances when the manufacturer, etc. delivered the product, including factors such as the following: situation at the time the product was delivered (the safety level required in society at the time the product was delivered) technological capabilities(the prior state of safety regulations and possibility of alternative design).