Gas Can Lawsuits

Manufacturing and design defects common in many portable gasoline containers can result in severe injuries and burns for young children as well as adults. Safer alternative designs and proper warnings could prevent many devastating burns and injuries from spills or gas can explosions.

STATUS OF GAS CAN LITIGATION: Lawsuits have been successfully brought against the makers of plastic gas cans, as well as against the retailers who have sold dangerous containers. Despite the litigation, many unsafe gas cans continue to be sold.

OVERVIEW: Devastating third degree burn injuries and death are commonly associated with defective gas cans, which often carry five gallons of gasoline and are left in garages and homes, within easy reach of children.

Failure to warn and design defect lawsuits have been brought against manufacturers of portable gasoline cans. The most common allegations of design defects in plastic gas cans involve:

• Lack of Child Resistant Gas Can Caps
• Lack of Flame Arrestor in the Gas Can Spout
• Lack of Closures Which Reduce the Risk of Gas Can Spills

Gas Can Caps: Child Resistant Closures

For years, makers of plastic gas cans have sold containers which do not contain any child resistant closures. Although the Poison Prevention Packaging Act has required child safety caps on toxic and flammable substances used in and around the home, manufacturers relied on a loophole in the law since their containers are sold empty.

In July 2008, the Children’s Gasoline Burn Prevention Act was passed into law, requiring all gas cans sold on or after January 17, 2009 to be sold with child resistant safety caps. However, hundreds of thousands of gas cans are still in homes throughout the United States with these unsafe and defective caps which over 80% of children under the age of 6 are able to quickly open.

Young children often attempt to imitate their parents, and most cases involving severe gas burns for kids under 6 stem from situations where they removed the cap and attempted to pour gasoline on a toy mower or their bicycle. As a result of the weight of the 5 gallon gasoline containers, the children often end up covered in gas, and they can suffer severe injuries if the vapors ignite.

Child resistant caps generally only cost a few pennies more than standard caps, yet manufacturers have resisted putting the safety caps on the gas cans.

Gas Can Spouts: Flame Arrestors and Spillproof Closures

Two other inexpensive safety features which many gas cans do not have are flame arrestors and spill proof closures.

Flame arrestors are a simple feature, which usually costs under 50 cents to add to a container. They are designed with small holes within the gas can spout, which prevent flames from flashing back into the container. The “technology” has been around for over 200 years, as it was originally designed to prevent explosions when coal miners carrying lanterns entered a pocket of gas within a mine. They are now used in a number of different products, including certain bottles of Bacardi Rum.

GAS CAN WARNINGS

Many gas can lawsuits filed allege a failure to warn about the dangers associated with the design. In many cases, gas can makers mold the warnings into the side of the container. The small raised letters in the red plastic are often not noticed by users or so difficult to read that they can not reasonably convey information.