Were you injured by a pressure cooker explosion? What seemed like a freak accident may really be the product of the pressure cooker manufacturer’s negligence.
The maker of the Instant Pot, Crock-Pot, Tristar Power Pressure Cooker, or other pressure cooker appliance should have done more to prevent the device failure that harmed you. Since this company failed to do so, it should be the one paying for the consequences of your injuries.
The number of pressure cooker injury lawsuits has been on the rise in recent years, as numerous electric pressure cooker models are being investigated over claims of design flaws and manufacturing defects.
Why Did My Pressure Cooker Explode?
In the aftermath of a serious injury, you might wonder how things went so wrong. Find out why pressure cookers explode.
How Dangerous Is a Pressure Cooker?
If you’ve suffered serious injuries from a pressure cooker, you’re not alone—unfortunately. Learn more about the pressure cooker injuries that may be the grounds for a personal injury lawsuit.
Can I Sue for a Pressure Cooker Injury?
Injured pressure cooker users across the country are moving forward with claims against the manufacturers of defective appliances. Find out how an attorney can help—at no upfront cost.
For hundreds of burn victims, it wasn’t a user error but rather a defect or malfunction of the pressure cooker that caused the explosion to happen. A pressure cooker injury lawyer can investigate the explosion and determine if you’re eligible for compensation. Call 866-778-5500 today for your free consultation.
The recent wave of popularity might trick you into thinking pressure cookers are new inventions, but the basic technology has been around for decades—centuries, even.
Modern electric pressure cookers and multi-cookers have far more advanced safety features than old-fashioned pressure cookers do. The problem is that faulty designs and manufacturing defects could render these safety features useless.
These locks, seals, latches, gaskets, vents, and safety valves can fail. When they do, pressure cookers can explode.
Hundreds of injured victims have already filed lawsuits against the makers of pressure cookers and multi-cookers, including Instant Brands, Inc., the manufacturer of Instant Pot. Instant Pots and other multi-cookers, like Sunbeam’s Crock-Pot multi-cookers, have been the subject of safety recalls, some of them large-scale.
Let’s take a step back. What exactly is a pressure cooker, and what does it mean for one to “explode”?
Pressure cooker refers to a kitchen appliance that uses a combination of the machine’s internal pressure and thermal heat to cook food faster. Electric pressure cookers go by many names:
Pressure cooking technology first came into use in 1679, but the devices used then obviously looked a lot different from modern electric models.
Just a few examples of modern electric pressure cooker models that have either been recalled for safety reasons or prompted burn injury lawsuits include:
Pressure cooker lawyers are currently investigating claims related to more than 70 models of electric pressure cookers produced by at least eight different manufacturers.
Some defective pressure cookers send lids and metal components rocketing into the air, and they can end up lodged in the ceiling. Other times, the explosion itself isn’t as dramatic, but it’s still dangerous.
The contents of a pressure cooker—steam, liquids, and solid food—reach temperatures well above that of boiling water. When they spray uncontrollably out of the appliance, these contents are hot enough to scald users with second- or third-degree burns, often over a large portion of their bodies.
If the explosion does send metal components flying, it’s all the more dangerous. These shrapnel injuries can cause deep cuts, become lodged in the body, and even sever limbs.
The forces that a pressure cooker uses to quickly cook through meats, stews, sauces, and other foods—pressure and heat—combine to create the potential for an explosion.
Only modern safety features keep these appliances venting steam (and pressure) safely and opening without spewing scalding hot food contents all over the user. When these safety mechanisms fail, due to a design or manufacturing defect, a pressure cooker explosion can occur.
When you put a meal in a pressure cooker and shut the lid tight, you create a sealed chamber inside the appliance. Within this chamber, the heat and steam generated by the device combine to create a high level of internal pressure.
It’s this combination of pressure and heat—in excess of 200 degrees, often climbing to more than 40 degrees above the boiling point of water— that speeds up cooking times by as much as 75 percent.
The extraordinary pressure that makes this cooking appliance work is the same force that makes an explosion possible. The lid must stay securely locked onto the appliance, or that pressure could blast it upwards. The steam must be released safely and thoroughly before the lid can be opened. Otherwise, it could expel the hot contents on the unsuspecting user.
Explosions that can shoot lids into the air, spray dangerously hot contents everywhere, and turn internal metal components into flying shrapnel are a known possibility of pressure cooking.
That’s why modern electric pressure cookers are made with multiple safety features that are supposed to prevent explosions by releasing this steam and the pressure along with it. Compared to old-fashioned stovetop pressure cookers, these electric pressure cookers with safety valves, locks, latches, and other safety features are less likely to explode and cause injury.
The problem is that these safety features can fail. When they do, the damage they can cause is life-changing.
There’s no definite way to tell exactly how often a safety feature failure occurs in electric pressure cookers or how commonly such a failure causes serious injuries. What we do know is that hundreds of people across the United States are pursuing pressure cooker lawsuits over burn injuries and other types of harm caused by an explosion.
These devastating injuries didn’t have to happen. They could have been prevented if only the manufacturer hadn’t made a device where the safety mechanisms intended to protect users were able to fail.
“… pressure cooking presents some inherent potential risks”Modern electric pressure cookers are designed with safety in mind, specifically because pressure cooking presents some inherent potential risks.
The reality is that these safety features are all that stand between users and a hazardous situation capable of leaving you with severe burns all over your body. If even one of these safety features fails, the result could be devastating.
Some of the safety mechanism failures that most commonly lead to a pressure cooker explosion include:
This isn’t an exhaustive list. Pressure cooker explosions may result from any defect in the design, manufacturing, or function of safety features and device components like the following:
When one or more parts of an electric pressure cooker malfunction in such a way that it causes a dangerous situation, some form of negligence on the part of the product’s manufacturer is often to blame.
Most pressure cooker injury lawsuits result from one or more of the following types of manufacturer negligence:
Pressure cooker injury lawsuits fall under a type of legal matter known as product liability. Basically, you’re seeking financial compensation from the maker of the product under the theory that a defect in design, manufacturing, marketing, or consumer warnings makes this party liable, or legally accountable, for your injuries.
Most product liability lawsuits are filed against one or more of the following defendants:
As of May 2021, some of the companies against which pressure cooker injury lawyers are currently either pursuing active lawsuits or investigating claims include:
You don’t have to figure out for yourself who to sue and how to prove each party’s negligence. A pressure cooker lawyer with experience taking on major corporations can look at the unique facts of your situation, identify all possible defendants, and gather the evidence to prove negligence and liability. This is all part of the work your attorney will do when handling your claim on a no-win, no-fee basis.
Victims have suffered some horrific injuries in pressure cooker explosions, including:
Emergency room visits, hospitalization, treatment in a specialized burn unit, and skin graft surgeries are all possible repercussions of a pressure cooker explosion. Some victims have to undergo physical therapy and other rehabilitation therapies. For limb loss survivors, finding, affording, and learning to use prosthetic limbs can be an overwhelming challenge.
Many victims also cope with disfiguring scars. While scar revision treatments can reduce the appearance of scars somewhat, it’s not unusual to have lifelong scars after a major burn, cut, or other serious injury.
It’s bad enough when a defective pressure cooker causes a terrible injury to an unsuspecting user who did all the right things. What’s even worse is that these explosions have sometimes harmed innocent children who just happened to be playing in or passing through the kitchen while an adult used the pressure cooker.
If you believe a faulty pressure cooker caused your injuries, there’s only one way to find out: allow a pressure cooker injury attorney to review your case at no cost.
Pressure cooker lawyers are personal injury attorneys who handle faulty device claims. These experienced burn attorneys are currently representing clients in Instant Pot lawsuits, Tri-star power cooker pressure cooker lawsuits, and claims against other manufacturers.
By moving forward with a claim, you can receive compensation for all of the harms you suffered because of your injuries.
The injuries caused by a faulty pressure cooker can affect every part of your life long after the explosion occurs. The point of filing a pressure cooker lawsuit is to get the compensation that covers all of your losses, or damages, and makes you financially whole.
The damages you can seek in an exploding pressure cooker lawsuit may include:
Pressure cooker settlements are specific to your unique situation. An attorney can identify and document all of your damages and fight for the compensation you deserve.
Don’t let the manufacturer of a dangerous product avoid the consequences. Your family deserves compensation, and the maker of a defective pressure cooker deserves to be held accountable.
The personal injury attorneys at Console & Associates are working with a network of experienced product liability law firms to investigate pressure cooker explosions and connect victims to no-win, no-fee legal services. For a free, no-obligation case review, call (866) 778-5500 today.
