Southwest settles lawsuit over safety issues

November 3, 2009

Southwest Airlines Co. has agreed to settle a shareholder lawsuit that grew out of safety violations at the carrier and will pay the investors’ lawyers $3.5 million.

 

Southwest disclosed the proposed settlement in a regulatory filing made Friday. A hearing on the deal was scheduled for Dec. 7 in state district court in Dallas.

 

The lawsuit was filed in August 2008, after the Federal Aviation Administration announced it would fine Southwest $10.2 million for operating some planes that had not gone through a required inspection for structural soundness. Southwest settled by agreeing to pay a $7.5 million penalty.

 

Read Article: Houston Chronicle  

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

Wife of firefighter killed in training sues Volusia

The widow of a Volusia County firefighter who died when a tree fell on him during a brush-fire training exercise is suing the county Fire Services department for wrongful death.

 

County firefighter John “J.J.” Curry was with the department nine months and attending his first training with a wildfire team when he was killed Nov. 27, 2007.

 

Volusia County Fire Services knew that using untrained firefighters to cut down trees was dangerous, according to the complaint filed last week, and failed to protect Curry from his death.

 

Read Article: Dayton Daily News 

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

Pompano Beach car dealer sued over warranty woes

A Pompano Beach used car dealer was sued Monday by the state attorney general’s office Monday after a series of customer complaints that cars sold by the dealer broke down soon after they were purchased and had warranties that promised more than they delivered.

 

An investigation by the attorney general’s economic crimes division found that Hollywood Auto Gallery sold vehicles claimed to be under under warranty — but the coverage was only good for about $500 worth of repairs. Owner Zachary S. Kessler allegedly took deposits from customers who wanted to have cars inspected before buying them, but then told the potential buyers they were obligated to buy the cars because they had made a deposit — regardless of the what the mechanics found.

 

Kessler did not return phone messages seeking comment Monday.

 

Customers also complained that Kessler sold cars that would break down just a few miles from the car lot, had worn out transmissions and engines in need of complete overhauls. But customers said they couldn’t get refunds from Kessler. Ads for Kessler’s businesses also offer free CarFax vehicle history reports, but the suit alleges customers didn’t receive these.

 

Read Article: Miami Herald  

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

Suit accuses Pulte Homes of inflating prices

A California homeowner filed a class-action suit against Pulte Homes on Friday alleging that the nation’s largest home builder fraudulently propped up home prices and sales in a “house of cards” scheme that eventually caused values in its developments to plunge.

 

The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Northern California, alleges that Pulte’s “one-stop shopping” business model, in which it controlled sales, financing, settlement services and appraisals, allowed it to sell homes at inflated prices and give buyers mortgages they could not afford.

 

Since Pulte Mortgage, Pulte’s financing subsidiary, quickly sold its loans on Wall Street, it was not affected when buyers defaulted, the suit said.

Read Article: San Francisco Chronicle  

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

A Fire Risk That Clears Security

With more people traveling with an assortment of portable electronics — sometimes a plane has more devices than passengers — fires are occurring on airliners with increasing frequency. More than half of the 22 battery fires in the cabin of passenger planes since 1999 have been in the last three years. One air safety expert suggested that these devices might be “the last unrestricted fire hazard” people can bring on airplanes.

 

This month, the Federal Aviation Administration along with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration issued special advisories to airlines about yet another gadget: the credit card readers that many have begun to issue to flight attendants to ring up sales of food, drinks and other amenities.

 

While airlines have used portable credit card readers for several years, the F.A.A. said earlier this month that they needed approval from the agency’s hazardous materials division. Like the majority of hand-held consumer electronic devices, the readers are powered by rechargeable lithium batteries, which the government considers hazardous.

 

Read Article: The New York Times 

Posted By: Phoenix DUI Attorney

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