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Author Archive for Gary – Page 2

Comments on Malibu Boats Safety Alert : Bow Seating

Malibu Boats released a Safety Alert in July 2023 regarding bow seating and swamping in certain older Malibu boats. This post will discuss the history behind Malibu’s bow swamping Safety Alert, comments concerning the Safety Alert, and possible future implications. Background History Long ago, some ski boat manufacturers began to offer open bow boats with […]

Walter Greer, 3, killed by boat propeller in Utah

Walter Greer, age 3 from Salt Lake City, was on a wakeboard boat with his family. They were on Echo Reservoir northwest of Coalville (Utah) Sunday, August 13, 2023. About 4:45pm Walter Greer fell from the wakeboard boat. Walter was fatally struck by the boat propeller. Walter was wearing a life jacket when he fell […]

Malibu Boats agrees to pay $100 million in Batchelder case

A 2014 propeller strike in Georgia claimed the life of 7 year old Ryan Batchelder. In August 2021 Malibu Boats was found guilty in Superior Court of Rabun County Georgia. The Product Liability Case verdict totaled $200 million dollars. Since then, Malibu Boats has been trying to reduce or eliminate the jury award. Malibu Boats, […]

Boat Propeller Guard Product Liability Defense Intro Vol1

In the mid to late 1980’s Mercury Marine, a Brunswick Corporation, and Outboard Marine Corporation (OMC) were facing a large number of boat propeller guard product liability / product defect lawsuits. Several of those lawsuits related to kill switches not being installed. This post is the second of a series of five posts announcing the […]

Boat Propeller Guard Product Liability Defense

We have completed a major project in which we studied the period in which Mercury Marine and Outboard Marine Corporation developed their legal defense against the use of boat propeller guards on recreational boats. This post is the first of five on this topic. Their defense is based on three documents which they helped create: […]

1989 NBSAC Propeller Guard Subcommittee Report Vol2

This post is the third of a series of five posts covering the boating industry’s legal defense against boat propeller guard product liability / product defect lawsuits. It focuses on our review of the 1989 U.S. Coast Guard National Boating Safety Advisory Council (NBSAC) Propeller Guard Subcommittee report. This post is a condensed version of […]

Underwater Head Impact Propeller Guard report Volume3

This post is the fourth of a series of five posts covering the boating industry’s legal defense. Specifically, their legal defense against boat propeller guard product liability / product defect lawsuits. It focuses on our review of the 1990 underwater testing of a propeller guard impacting an anthropomorphic dummy’s head. The testing was performed at […]

Underwater Leg Impact Propeller Guard report Volume4

This post is the fifth of a series of five posts covering the boating industry’s legal defense. Specifically, their legal defense against boat propeller guard product liability / product defect lawsuits. It focuses on our review of the 1990 underwater testing of a propeller guard impacting cadaver legs. The testing was performed at State University […]

California woman struck by boat propeller in Columbia

Natalia Andrea Larranaga Fajardo, 26 originally from Columbia, now from California, was on vacation in Columbia on November 27, 2022. Natalia was on Wata Beach in San Andes, Columbia about 445 miles off the mainland coast of Columbia. She saw some people she knew on a tour boat and joined them. The tour boat was […]

Reduce Peak Impact Force of Boat Propeller Guards

This Tech Brief explains a method that may reduce maximum impact force of some boat propeller guards striking people. This method may also: Reduce injuries caused by striking some boat propeller guards at lower speeds. Allow some propeller guards to be operated at higher speeds while causing less severe injuries to people in the water. […]