Aviation Attorneys National News

Those Involved Pilot Error Negligence Crashes Or Their Survivors Were Suing Aircraft Companies In 90 Percent Of The Cases

Sales of single-piston engine aircraft plummeted after peaking in 1978. Over 100,000 jobs eventually were lost as plants closed. This was due in large part to the dramatic rise in damage awards and liability insurance costs associated with the manufacture of general aviation aircraft. Manufacturers were forced to pass along these costs to their customers and thus had a less attractive product. Manufacturers of private aircraft faced liability insurance expenses amounting to an average of $100,000 per aircraft produced. Those involved in crashes or their survivors were suing aircraft companies in 90 percent of all crashes even though pilot error is responsible for 85 percent of all crashes. Innovation was also stymied as manufacturers withdrew new products and parts from the market.

• In 1994, the General Aviation Revitalization Act (GARA) was signed into law. This law protects manufacturers of light, non-commercial aircraft from product liability lawsuits for defects on aircraft older than 18 years.

Once GARA was signed into law, general aviation manufacturers saw a dramatic growth in sales. Shipments of single-engine aircraft were four times higher in 2000 than in 1994. Employment has jumped by 25,000 as companies such as Cessna restarted production.
"Impacts of Tort Law on Selected Sectors of the Economy," by Donald A. Norman, I Pay, You Pay, We All Pay, Edited by Frederick T. Stocker MAPI/Manufacturers Alliance. p. 56-57

Competitiveness
"Producers of the goods and services that make the American economy strong have come to believe that no matter what they do, no matter how responsibly they behave, they are going to be held liable for the negligence of others." CATO Handbook for Congress, p. 363.

• Of the $233 billion overall tort liability costs, the most recent Tillinghast study estimated that $129 billion falls on businesses ($80 billion is for personal liability, and $25 billion is for medical malpractice).
• The $233 billion price tag only includes the direct costs of the liability system - the Tillinghast study does not estimate the indirect costs, including: reduced innovation, and the loss of safe, useful services or products that were discontinued because they might be magnets for unjustified litigation. - "Tort Liability Costs for Small Businesses"
US Chamber Institute for Legal Reform, June 2004
• Small businesses contribute approximately three-quarters of all new jobs added to the economy, and they are the ones most burdened by liability costs.
• Today, the typical American small-business owner earns less than $50,000 a year. One frivolous lawsuit could wipe out his or her business. And business owners have reason to be concerned, especially those who operate the smallest firms, because according to estimates, one lawsuit that goes to trial costs a small business about $100,000.

Contact an Aviation Attorney near you to find out more about your legal rights.