It has recently been reported that the Drive DeVilbiss Healthcare Adult Portable Rails may have been responsible for two deaths due to entrapment and asphyxiation. The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission, or CPSC, and DeVilbiss Healthcare, the manufacturer of the portable adult bed rails, recently launched a voluntary recall of its various models of Bed Assist Handle and Bed Assist Rail. This recall is in response to two different reports of entrapment-related deaths associated with two of Drive DeVilbiss’ portable bed rails.
The product defect-related deaths occurred in 2011 and 2015 when two seniors one aged 92 and the other aged 93, passed due to entrapment and asphyxiation. According to reports, the railing was not securely attached to the bed and the users became entrapped between the product and their mattress.
It has been reported that 496,100 units were sold in the United States, with an additional 68,000 units sold in Canada. The cost of the units ranged between $30 and $80. The product was sold at Walmart.com and Amazon.com from 2007 until December of 2021 when the product recall was announced.
Currently, in the United States, there are about 29 million injuries per year related to defective products, resulting in approximately twenty-one thousand deaths. Product manufacturers have a responsibility to make their products safe before being sold.
If you or someone you know has suffered due to a faulty or poorly designed product, contact an experienced attorney at Abraham, Watkins, Nichols, Agosto, Aziz & Stogner by calling 713-222-7211 or toll-free at 1-800-594-4884.