“Fake” Wine, Bad Faith, Recalled Jeeps – Aronberg & Aronberg

You may not think that imposter wine, bad faith insurance companies and defective automobiles have anything to do with one another, except for in the case of some horrible accident—but if you think that, you’re incorrect! In this blog, we’re going to explore each of these four current topics which are all similar in that they fall under the umbrella of personal injury in separate forms—albeit some are far more costly than others!

Let’s start with the “fake” wine.  It is “Pinot Noir” to be exact.  A settlement has been reached in New York, NY, in a class action lawsuit against a wine manufacturer for improperly labeling wine that they were selling as being Pinot Noir.  The lawsuit claimed—and the judge agreed—that the wine was not technically Pinot Noir because it lacked a certain amount of a certain varietal that was necessary for the wine to be characterized as that specific type of wine.  If you feel that you have been duped into buying faux-Pinot Noir, please visit www.frenchpinotnoirsettlement.com for details on how to obtain the reimbursement that you’re owed as a result of the settlement.  You are still entitled to some degree of reimbursement even if you have misplaced your proof of purchase.

Next, we go to a legal settlement involving bad faith on behalf of an insurance company.  A woman in Virginia Beach, Virginia was involved in an auto accident and incurred $24,000 in medical bills as a result.  Her insurance policy covered her for $10,000, and she made a claim for those funds multiple times, each time being rejected by her insurer.  Finally, she filed a bad faith lawsuit against the insurance company, also seeking punitive damages that are recognized under the Virginia bad faith clause.  A judge ruled in her favor, awarding her 100% of her outstanding medical bills, $1,500 for attorney’s fees (for the lawsuit) and $4,000 in in punitive damages.  The Virginia Beach woman suffered twice: first, she was injured in an auto accident and next her insurance company denied her the coverage she was owed.  In the end, justice prevailed, and she was awarded what she deserved.

Let’s now take a look at the defective automobiles.  Chrysler has issued a recall on 209,724 Jeep Liberty SUVs manufactured between July 2003 and July 2005.  Typically, a car that’s seven to nine years old isn’t an issue—but in this case, it certainly is.  The SUVs have corrosion defects which could lead to a dangerous loss of control of the vehicle.  In several instances, corrosion of lower suspension arms of the vehicle led to fracture and complete separation.  The recall involves consumers in states on the west coast and the mid-west.  According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), Chrysler will contact the affected consumers and replace their vehicles free of charge.

For questions about fake wine, insurance companies, defective cars and anything in between, please contact the Law Offices of Aronberg & Aronberg at 561-266-9191 or daronberg@build.simple.biz.

Views: 0