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Torts keyed to Best
Warner Fruehauf Trailer Co. v. Boston
Citation:
654 A.2d 1272 (D.C. 1995)Facts
William Boston was a supervising mechanic for the Potomac Electric Power Company (PEPCO). On one Sunday morning, Mr. Boston was responding to an emergency call for a power outage. He obtained a truck that he hadn’t used prior, and, with the help of a colleague, began to unload it so that he could re-load it with tools for the morning’s work.
After he and his crew had unloaded some of the more heavy objects, a crew member placed the truck liftgate in a vertical “closed” position. Mr. Boston approached the closed liftgate to attach safety chains. While he was doing this, the liftgate suddenly malfunctioned. The 1050 pound metal platform fell, striking Mr. Boston in the hip and causing injury.
The liftgate was distributed by Warner Fruehauf. The liftgate was powered by a one-cylinder hydraulic mechanism and had no back-up safety mechanism. Over ½ of all these kinds of liftgates had previously malfunctioned in an identical manner, and Warner Fruehauf was aware of this issue. The liftgate also contained two warning labels. One was 189 words long and only contained a vague warning of malfunction causing free-fall, and the other only warned to stay clear when the gate was in use.
Mr. Boston and his wife filed suit against the liftgate manufacturer and distributor, Warner Fruehauf for loss of consortium, and damages from his injuries.
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