JERE BEASLEY REPORT October 2018 I. the passenger compartment below the escape the passenger compartment. dashboard. There are numerous horror stories about CAPITOL The interior of the passenger compart- people being burned alive by engine fires OBSERVATIONS ment caught fire in less than two minutes. coming into the passenger compartment. Mr. Hough, whose clothes were on fire, This is a needless tragedy. eventually was able to get the seatbelt to Many European-designed cars, since at release and he climbed out of the passen- least the mid-1990s, have double firewalls, BEASLEY ALLEN PART OF TEAM SELECTED BY ger side of the vehicle, but not before he which isolate the engine compartment GEORGIA ATTORNEY GENERAL FOR OPIOID was severely burned. He was transferred from the passenger compartment. These LITIGATION to the burn unit at the University of designs also isolate the brake reservoir to Our firm was honored to be selected as Alabama at Birmingham, where he suf- help reduce the potential for fires one of the firms to represent the State of fered for four months before dying from post-crash. Georgia in the state’s opioid litigation. We the complications from his burn injuries. While Greg was in the process of appreciate the confidence placed in our Many consumers think that their vehi- writing this article, there was a news firm by Georgia Attorney General Chris cles have firewalls. While some European article of a gentleman in Birmingham who Carr. A news release from the attorney designs do, most U.S. and Asian vehicles was entrapped in his car and burned to general’s office can be found in the opioid do not. The manufacturers cut numerous death from an engine fire before the fire section of this Report. holes through what was once called the department arrived. These fires are very “firewall.” It should be noted that wiring harnesses, cables and HVAC vents pene- IN THIS ISSUE trate the dash panel. Usually the holes are II. filled with some type of flammable mate- I. Capitol Observations ...............2 AUTOMOBILE rial, such as rubber or plastic grommets. II. Automobile News Of Note ...........2 Car manufacturers generally make no NEWS OF NOTE effort to fireproof the barrier or bulkhead III. Purely Political News & Views ........6 between the engine compartment and the passenger compartment. IV. An Update On the Opioid Litgiation ....7 AUTOMOBILE ENGINE FIRES CAN PROVE TO BE It should be noted that the auto manu- V. Whistleblower Litigation ............9 DEADLY facturers refuse to call the barrier between the engine compartment and the VI. Product Liability Update ...........11 Greg Allen, the senior Products Liabil- passenger compartment a “firewall.” ity lawyer in our firm, recently settled a Instead, they call the barrier a “dash VII. An Update On the Talc Litigation .....12 case for a confidential amount with panel” or “bulkhead.” The reason is General Motors involving the death of an because car companies do no testing to VIII. Mass Torts Litigation Update ........14 elderly gentleman, who was severely determine how long this dash panel can IX. An Update On Securities Insurance burned when a fire started in the engine withstand an engine fire before it goes and Finance Litigation .............16 compartment of his Chevrolet Blazer and into the passenger compartment. quickly spread into the passenger com- There is no Federal Motor Vehicle X. Employment and FLSA Litigation .....16 partment. Mr. Lamar Hough was on his Safety Standard that requires engine fires way home when, unbeknownst to him, to be contained for any period of time. It XI. Premises Liability Update ...........17 his Blazer developed an oil leak around an is well known that engine fires are the improperly installed oil filter. most prevalent automotive fires, far more XII. Workplace Hazards ...............18 - The vaporized oil came out under pres prevalent than fuel-fed fires, such as gaso- XIII. Transportation ...................19 sure and sprayed onto the hot exhaust line tank or fuel line rupture. There are manifold. The vehicle started running 500 deaths and 3,000 injuries a year from XIV. Toxic Tort Concerns ..............19 rough due to the drop in oil pressure. Mr. engine fires getting into the passenger Hough was very close to his driveway compartment; however, car manufactur- XV. Update On Nursing Home Litigation ..21 going up a hill when the Blazer shut off ers generally ignore this hazard. XVI. An Update On Class Action Litigation ..22 and the engine caught fire. The Blazer Many consumers are not aware of the rolled back into the ditch. Mr. Hough was flammability danger of the numerous XVII. Ongoing Litigation At Beasley Allen ...24 properly wearing his seatbelt. fluids and materials in the engine com- At rest, the Blazer was tilted at an angle partment that will allow the engine to XVIII. The Consumer Corner .............29 in the ditch. As a result, Mr. Hough had burn. Oil, gasoline, transmission fluid, XIX. Recalls Update ...................31 difficulty trying to unlatch his seatbelt. A windshield wiper fluid, antifreeze, plas- witness, who tried to help release the tics and rubber are all capable of supply- XX. Firm Activities ...................35 seatbelt, testified in deposition about the ing a fuel load to a fire. buildup of heat and smoke inside the Studies show that at least 15 to 20 XXI. Special Recognitions ..............36 Blazer. The witness turned and ran to minutes escape time is needed to allow retrieve a fire extinguisher. The engine time for fire departments to arrive on the XXII. Favorite Bible Verses ..............37 fire grew larger and, due to the lack of a scene. This is especially true for rural XXIII. Closing Observations ..............37 firewall in the Blazer, the fire came into areas. After crashes, the occupants may be disabled or entrapped and cannot XXIV. Parting Words ...................39 2 BeasleyAllen.com prevalent and need to be addressed. rises again. The company said that the GM will not be prosecuted, nor will any However, without government interven- defect can be identified in progress as the of the company’s officials face criminal tion, only lawsuits can encourage manu- dashboard may alert the driver. Other charges. However, it should be noted that facturers to do their job and design electrical systems—such as the radio, officials at GM knew about the defective safer products. dashboard lights, air conditioning or ignition switch for about 10 years before The GM case was handled by Greg cruise control—may also shut down at the the automaker was exposed in the Melton Allen, Stephanie Monplaisir and LaBarron same time. GM is offering reimbursement case. We have written extensively in pre- Boone from Beasley Allen, along with to vehicle owners for repairs to the vious issues about this Georgia case. As Shane Seaborn and Myron Penn of the system. The automaker said it made we have reported, Atlanta lawyer Lance Penn & Seaborn Law Firm with offices in improvements between 2015 and 2017 Cooper was directly responsible for dis- Clayton, Union Springs and Montgomery. model years to address the elec- covering the defect that had been known The amount of the settlement in confiden- trical issue. and hidden by GM for a decade. Lance tial. Greg did a tremendous job of discov- In a statement, NHTSA encouraged brought this to NHTSA’s attention. Had ery in this case and some of the vehicle owners to visit its website to this not happened, there would have been depositions and Defense experts were determine if their vehicles are affected no recall and no multidistrict litigation devastating for the automaker. Greg felt it and to contact a local dealership to sched- (MDL). Lance also brought our firm into very important that the facts of the case ule a free repair if they are. The loss of the Melton case and the rest is history. and information relating to the overall power steering described by customers In the multidistrict litigation, which safety problems involved not be confiden- matched an electrical issue that led to a came about after the Melton case, people tial. If you need more information, recall of 691,000 2014-model Chevrolet made personal injury and wrongful-death contact Greg at 800-898-2034 or by email Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 claims against GM. The design defects in at [email protected]. pickup trucks that GM conducted last the GM vehicle models caused the igni- year, and the investigation showed it was tion to slip out of the “on” position, shut- caused by the same issue. ting off the vehicle and preventing airbags GM RECALLS 1 MILLION VEHICLES OVER POWER Source: Law360.com from deploying. Drivers would be unable STEERING DEFECT to control their vehicles and in many cases crashes would occur. More than 100 General Motors has issued a recall of GM CRIMINAL CASE ENDS AFTER $900 MILLION deaths were caused by this defect. more than 1 million 2015-model trucks SETTLEMENT AND THREE-YEAR OVERSIGHT GM launched an extensive recall of and SUVs, saying an electrical defect in affected vehicles in 2014. The govern- the vehicles’ power steering can cause The U.S. Department of Justice’s (DOJ) ment is represented by Sarah K. Eddy. The drivers to lose control during low-speed criminal charges that General Motors Co. case is USA v. General Motors Company turns. In a recall report submitted to the committed wire fraud and made false (case number 1:15-cr-00747) in the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Adminis- statements related to a deadly problem District Court for the Southern District tration (NHTSA) last month, General with ignition switches were officially dis- of New York. Motors LLC wrote that six models of light missed in New York federal court last Source: Law360.com trucks built between September 2013 and month.