CHICAGO and SEATTLE, June 22 /PRNewswire/ -- Today a Chicago parent filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against RC2 , the 'Thomas the Train' toy manufacturer on behalf of all purchasers after learning the toys were manufactured using highly toxic lead paint putting children at a serious health risk.
According to the complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Illinois, RC2 distributed at least 1.5 million toys containing lead paint between January 2005 and June 2007. Among the products in question is the popular Thomas & Friends Wooden Railway.
Despite marketing its toys as 'Safe and Quality Playthings' RC2 distributed toys that had red and yellow surface paint containing lead, which is extremely toxic if ingested, the complaint states.
On June 14, 2007, the Consumer Product Safety Commission ordered a voluntary recall of the toys. Despite the recall, the company is not offering a reimbursement program for the dangerous toys, but will exchange the dangerous one for a new, ostensibly safer toy.
"We think RC2's response to this dangerous health issue is far short of what is necessary," said Steve Berman, managing partner of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro and the attorney representing the named plaintiffs. "There are legions of children that may have ingested lead paint from these toys, and we think the company should stand up to its responsibility to help identify these kids."
Named plaintiff Channing Hesse purchased a number of the lead-tainted toys for her toddler boys beginning in 2006 believing the toys were safe. Now, according to Berman, she wonders about the long-term health effects on her children.
"The biggest horror of this story is that parents know their toddlers often put toys in their mouths,' Berman noted. "Consumers trust that companies like RC2 will live up to the promise it makes in its advertising, promising "safe and quality playthings."
The complaint states that children under six years of age will absorb about 50 percent of the lead they ingest and exposure can lead to a wide range of health effects, including IQ deficits, learning disabilities, behavioral problems, stunted or slowed growth and impaired hearing.
"We know that lead poisoning affects children differently but experts agree that there is no such thing as a 'safe' level of lead exposure," said Berman.
RC2 states on its Web site "We understand that what matters most to parents is keeping their children healthy, happy and safe. What mattes most to us is helping parents to just that by offering products for every stage of your child's development ... "
Since there is no effective treatment available for lead poisoning the CPSC has declared that "toys and other articles intended for use by children that bear lead-containing paint are banned hazardous products."
RC2 designs, produces and markets a wide range of infant and toddler toys and accessories including Soothie bottles, sippy and straw cups, feeding accessories and healthcare products and markets under The First Years and Lamaze brands, Thomas & Friends, Bob the Builder, Winnie the Pooh, John Deere, Nickelodeon and Sesame Street.
The filed suit claims RC2 violated the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act and Consumer Fraud Laws of other states, breached the implied warranty by selling goods that were unfit, is strictly liable for damages and acted negligently in product design.
About Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro
The law firm of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro is based in Seattle with offices in Chicago, Cambridge, Los Angeles, Phoenix and San Francisco. Since the firm's founding in 1993, it has developed a nationally recognized practice in class-action and complex litigation. Among recent successes, HBSS has negotiated a pending $300 million settlement as lead counsel in the DRAM memory antitrust litigation; a $340 million recovery on behalf of Enron employees which is awaiting distribution; a $150 million settlement involving charges of illegally inflated charges for the drug Lupron, and served as co-counsel on the Visa/Mastercard litigation which resulted in a $3 billion settlement, the largest anti-trust settlement to date. HBSS also served as counsel in a $850 million settlement in the Washington Public Power Supply litigation and represented Washington and 12 other states in lawsuits against the tobacco industry that resulted in the largest settlement in the history of litigation. For a complete listing of HBSS cases, visit http://www.hbsslaw.com/.
CONTACTS:
Steve Berman (206) 623-7292
Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro
