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Pressure cookers are all the rage now. Consumers have found them to be useful kitchen tools for tenderizing and fast food cooking. Even though there are benefits to using pressure cookers, many of them have caused serious injuries because of malfunctioning parts which can cause explosions, or other malfunctions. 

An example of a pressure cooker problem from CBS Miami is that of a woman who was helping her husband make stew using a Tristar pressure cooker XL. She released the steam valve twice to make sure all the steam was out and opened the lid. The boiling hot contents exploded all over her. She suffered second-degree burns on her hands, arms and chest causing severe scarring. The pot’s safety mechanism should have prevented her from opening the pot, but it did not. 

How does a pressure cooker work? 

Pressure cookers consist of a sealed pot with a valve that controls and traps the steam pressure inside. As the pot heats up, the liquid inside forms steam. This steam raises the pressure in the pot and cooks the food inside. 

The effect of steam and electrical burns 

According to Medicineplus.gov, burns commonly occur by direct or indirect contact with heat, electric current, radiation, or chemical agents. Burns can lead to cell death.

 There are 3 levels of burns: 

1. First-degree burns affect only the outer layer of the skin. They cause pain, redness, and swelling.
2. Second-degree burns affect both the outer and underlying layers of skin. They cause pain, redness, swelling, and blistering. They are also called partial thickness burns.
3. Third-degree burns affect the deep layers of skin. They are also called full thickness burns. They cause white or blackened, burned skin, and the skin may be numb. 

Severe burns need urgent medical care. Burns on the face, hands and feet can be particularly serious and cause permanent scarring or disfigurement that can require hospitalization and surgery.

Consumer Watch says that some of the design flaws in pressure cookers that have left consumers with serious, disfiguring burns include: 

• Faulty seals
• Defective safety pins
• Defective steam venting, leading to explosion
• Faulty gaskets
• Defective safety valves 

The Daily Hornet reported that Tristar Inc., manufacturer of the Power Pressure Cooker XL, is facing a growing number of lawsuits from people who were seriously burned. Consumers have claimed that the lid can blow off the pressure cooker and explode its contents. While consumers have made reports and complaints to the Consumer Protection Service Commission (CPSC), no recall has been issued. 

Almost all recalls start with reports like the Tristar report. The process starts when the CPSC reads the report and makes a preliminary decision about the risk of more injuries. This decision is preliminary because the CPSC must get permission from the manufacturer to issue any warnings or recalls. The vast majority of recalls are voluntary, but companies do refuse. Should they refuse a mandatory recall is issued. These mandatory recalls are extremely rare, as they require a court order after a trial hearing. The bottom line is there is no guarantee of a recall, even when a product is obviously defective. 

What legal recourse do consumers have? 

Thousands of burn injuries each year are caused by defective products. When a person is injured by a dangerous product, he/she may have a product liability action against the seller, distributor, or manufacturer of the product. This liability can be for: 

• Failure to inspect or test the product before placing it on the market
• Creating a flaw in the product
• Failing to discover a flaw in a product
• Failure to discover that the product could be dangerous
• Failure to warn, or adequately warn, of a risk or hazard associated with the product 

Under product liability laws, an injured person can recover damages as long as he/she can demonstrate that the product was defective and unreasonably dangerous. 

“Defective products have caused devastating injuries. Should you or a loved one be injured as a result of a defective product, please contact us at Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A. There are no costs or attorney fees unless we make a monetary recovery for you,” said Randall Spivey, Fort Myers Defective Product Attorney. 

Fort Myers Defective Product Attorney, Randall L. Spivey is a Board Certified Civil Trial Attorney – the highest recognition for competence bestowed by the Florida Bar and a distinction earned by just 1 percent of Florida attorneys. He has handled over 2,000 personal injury and wrongful death cases throughout Florida. For a free and confidential consultation to discuss your legal rights, contact the Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A., in Lee County at  239. 337.7483 or toll free at 1.888.477.4839, or by email to Randall@SpiveyLaw.com.  Visit SpiveyLaw.com  for more information. You can contact Spivey Law Firm, Personal Injury Attorneys, P.A. in Charlotte County at 941.764.7748 and in Collier County 239.793.7748.