Parents claiming injuries plan to sue buggy maker
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Your support makes all the difference.Parents who claim their children’s fingertips were severed by Maclaren buggies are planning to sue the manufacturer.
Maclaren, based in Northamptonshire, announced a ‘recall’ of a million buggies in the US last month after 12 children had parts of their fingers cut off, but has refused to contact parents in the UK, saying there was no evidence of injuries here.
Dozens of families have come forward claiming their children were hurt by the buggies following publicity about the US recall.
Richard Langton, of law firm Russell, Jones and Walker, is representing some of them after raising the possibility of legal action in The Independent. Claims will depend on individual circumstance but are expected to range from £1,000 to £10,000, he said.
“We are already handling 15 potential claims where children have been hurt, allegedly by their Maclaren buggies, and we are urging trading standards to issue a product recall to stop any further injuries,” his law firm said in a statement.
The buggy firm, which last month said it would issue ‘safety kits’ to UK parents if contacted, is denying legal liability.
Maclaren said: “We can confirm that consumers have contacted us directly and, while we would not comment on individual cases, we have responded to all of them and are making every effort to establish with those individuals the exact nature of the incident.
“We continue to encourage and welcome all feedback from Maclaren consumers.”
More than 30 parents have contacted the BBC, claiming their children were treated in hospital after lacerating their fingertips in Maclaren buggies. Some cases date back several years.
Liz Harmer, from Manningtree, Essex, wrote to the company 18 months ago when her daughter Olivia sliced off her fingertip in the hinge of her buggy.
Mrs Harmer said: “My mother was looking after her at the time and she had no idea what she had done. Olivia screamed and there was a lot of blood and it was only after she folded up the buggy that we found the little tip of Olivia’s finger in the hinge.
“The most frustrating thing about this is that it has happened again and again. I find it very distressing that this is still happening, because we alerted Maclaren to this over a year ago now and the fact that they just brushed it aside is very frustrating.
“It shouldn’t have happened to anybody else’s child.”
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