(I don’t know if this is the Foot Fixer model in question. This is a photo I found online of an infamous “internet celebrity” using a Foot Fixer model.)
Who knew something that most people buy as a thoughtless Christmas Present on December 23rd could make a man lose his legs?
In 1986, George Burgess purchased a Clairol Foot Fixer, an electronic foot bath massager. Naturally, he put his feet in the warm water for about 30 minutes. Oh, George was also a diabetic with poor foot circulation. I’m pre-diabetic, I’m scared to put my feet in any danger, like too tight shoes, or hot showers, because I’m afraid of losing my feet. That’s what happened to George, his feet blistered, and the blood vessels in his toes were burnt to such a degree that there was no hope in saving them. Eventually, George had his legs amputated from the knees down.
A lawsuit ensued, with Burgess stating that the Foot Fixer heated water to 105 degrees, (which could maim people with poor circulation) instead of the proper 95 degrees, and that Clairol did not put warnings on the box or the instructions. However, in 1991, George died. The lawsuit was amended to a wrongful death lawsuit–from the research I did, I never found a cause of George’s death though. Due to his death, with the lawsuit being amended to George’s estate as the plaintiff, the claim was put an end to. When he died, so did the lawsuit:
Punitive damages are not available under Illinois’ Wrongful Death Act, nor does a punitive damage claim pass to the decedent’s estate under Illinois’ Survival Act, the U.S . District Court for the Northern District of Illinois recently held (George Burgess and
Cynthia Burgess v. Clairol Inc. . No. 87 C 8918, N.D. Ill.)
Sources:
1. “BURGESS v. CLAIROL, INC. | Leagle.com.” BURGESS v. CLAIROL, INC. | Leagle.com. http://www.leagle.com/decision/19912054776FSupp1278_11890.xml/BURGESS%20v.%20CLAIROL,%20INC. (accessed August 3, 2014).
2. Mealey’s Litigation Reports 6: 5-7. http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/documentStore/u/r/g/urg22f00/Surg22f00.pdf (accessed August 3, 2014)
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