Posted on 12/18/2004 8:09:48 PM PST by yankeedame
Updated: 08:38 PM EST
Paraplegic Sues Chrysler, Says Heated Seat Burned Him
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. (AP)--A paraplegic man who suffered burns when the heated seat of his SUV malfunctioned is suing Daimler Chrysler Corp. (DCX) for $14.1 million.
Matt Beller, of Klamath Falls, who filed the suit this week in U.S. District Court in Eugene, said he was in his 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee when the temperature of the driver's seat climbed to more than 150 degrees last Feb. 20.
Beller says he has no feeling below his chest because of military injuries and said he did not know he had been burned until the next day.
He underwent skin graft surgery and had to lie on his stomach for three months, he said.
Beller, 29, says the problem is nationwide and that others have suffered from it.
Beller seeks $10 million punitive damages, up to $3 million for non-economic damages and up to $1,150,000 for economic damages for past and future medical expenses.
Chrysler spokeswoman Mary Gauthier in Detroit said Friday that the company could not comment on the lawsuit without seeing it.
Beller lost the use of his legs in the Marine Corps due to a climbing accident during a training exercise.
Dow Jones Newswires 12-17-042028ET
Copyright (C) 2004 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
2004-12-17 20:28 -05
Copyright (C) 2004 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
I have a 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee Special Edition, and yes, the seats do get quite toasty. But I just turn them off. I have a silly question... if he can't feel the heat from the seat, why did he turn it on in the first place?
At least it didn't hurt.
I hope it's not a silly question because it occurred to me as well. I just didn't want to sound like a wise-ass by asking it.
Maybe he turned it on accidentally. That happened to me just a couple of weeks ago in my daughter's car. I tried to adjust the seat and somehow turned the "bun warmer" on.
To permit such a high temperature is negligence that is compounded by what appears to have been the absence of a prominently displayed indicator that the warmer was on and/or a warning indicator of extreme temperature.
The fact of this gentleman's paralysis is not a mitigating factor - This could just as easily have been a child, a pet or a drunk!
Of course this moron turned it on. This is a variant of the McDonald's hot coffee burns lawsuit scams. BTW, parapelegics ususally have have very fragile, sensitive skin on their buttocks. Often with bedsores (now termed "pressure wounds").
In the corrupt lottery of the unregulated American lawyer industry, personal responsibility has no role. It is all about enriching the unregulated shysters at public expense. I LOVE my seat warmers, nice and hot on a sub-zero night, thank you very much. Are the car makers now going to be forced to make them luke warm?
Why was it on in the first place if he can't feel anything there in the first place? It's not like having the car's heater on, which would keep his whole body warm. I feel for the guy but why would he have a model with a butt warmer in it? And if it's not optional equipment, why didn't he get it disconnected, as he has to be aware of the potential problems due to his own health. People have to take responsibility for their own, particular health concerns.
He may well have turned it on because even with no feeling, his extremities probably have poor circulation, and his doctor may have told him to turn it on to help keep his hips and legs warm. For heaven sake guys, this guy is a vet with a legitimate problem. This is one case to not blame the victim. If you really believe auto manufacturers build perfect vehicles with no defects, I have a bridge in Brooklyn I'd like to sell you.
Maybe by accident?
The heat controls malfunctioned in our 300M seats continuously. Chrysler told us they were working fine, but they sporadically, and randomly turned on the seat heat. On one trip to Fayetteville (to Freep) the seat turned itself on 10 times (I turned it off each time) before I stopped the car and yanked out the switches. Chrysler still insists there is no malfuntion, and I have never reconnected the switches.
Maybe if this dingbat read the owner's manual, he wouldn't have such a cherry butt now.
Not blaming the victim in this this one but I'm not rooting for him either. If he was suing for something reasonable...as in a million or two, I'd be in his corner. I am wondering if Chrysler actually manufactured the seats, heating mechanism & controls. I tend to doubt that Chrysler did--this sort of work is usually farmed out, isn't it?
The story related to his accident is heart breaking.
So he's a Parapelegic, driving a car?
Yes, I know, controls and such can be added so it's a hand-only operation, my question is that why such a person would be matched up with a vehicle that could harm him.
For him to drive the vehicle, it must have been adapted to hand controls. Someone should have thought about it.
The other issue I have, why do seats heat to the point of injury? I've been in a buddies beemer that had heated seats. It was warm, but never hot. Why would a seat ever get that hot?
This whole issue smells to me. The man seems to have been injured, but there's a larger issue here. Either there's a fundamental flaw in the design, certainly possible, or there's something else going on.
Perhaps it was his heated wheelchair that got him. But Chrysler has deeper pockets.
I can buy suffering but don't you have to scratch ''pain'' in this case?
Three times meds, three times meds...keep saying as your mantra, and when you get burned, maimed, paralyzed, etc. (and God forbid) come tell me "Just three times meds". The truth of the matter is that no one would trade a burn like that for three times meds, or $13 million. The manufacturer could have prevented this easily with a thermostat, a warning light, etc. I don't see anything wrong with making the manufacturer bear the cost of its engineering flaws.
And hyperbole such as your comment about the lawyer taking $13 mil out of a $14 mil judgment is absurd and misinformed.
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