Page 12 - july-august 2020
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Immunize Me!
By Mark Dreyer
o, this isn’t about the Coronavirus first install, repair, maintain, adjust or service
If you are a defendant in a lawsuit, the LP-gas appliance before resorting to an
it is always a good idea to have a individual other than his or her LP-gas dealer
N clearly articulated defense strategy who regularly supplies propane Ala Code
that minimizes your risk and maximizes your 9-17-109(e)
chances of prevailing at the pleading or If a consumer who suffers damage
summary judgment stages Common law due to a negligently performed installation,
defenses such as contributory or comparative repair, maintenance, adjustment or service
negligence or assumption of the risk are has not provided the required notice to the
oftentimes difficult to establish as a matter of LP-gas dealer and provided the dealer with
law prior to trial because issues of causation an opportunity to do that work, then “no
and foreseeability are frequently fact legal action shall be commenced against
intensive However, some states provide such LP-gas dealer ” Ala Code 9-17-109(e)
propane retailers with an additional tool for (1) LP-gas dealers who fail to document
the defense toolbox that can result in a win and maintain in writing all notices from
for the retailer in advance of trial If your state consumers for at least five years are guilty of a
law includes any form of dealer immunity misdemeanor Ala Code 9-17-109(e)(3) The
statute, you need to be familiar with when it Code also provides immunity if damages are
applies and what you can do to help establish a proximate consequence of consumer’s use
your statutory immunity of any equipment or appliance in a manner
Not all states have dealer immunity or for a purpose other than that for which the
statutes, and in states that do there is very equipment or appliance was intended
little uniformity in how immunity attaches For This statutory regime suggests several
example, the pertinent portion of Alabama’s proactive steps retailers may take to help
immunity statute provides as follows: immunize themselves from liability One is
[A]ny consumer who desires to install, to consider including a statement in new
repair, maintain, adjust, or service any customer warnings of the customer’s statutory
liquefied petroleum gas appliance, LP-gas obligation to provide notice, along with a
systems, or any component thereof, shall citation to the statute Another would be to
notify the LP-gas dealer who regularly supplies include similar verbiage at least annually to
such consumer with LP-gas of his or her all consumers, supplemented with a counter
intention to employ an individual other than display at each retail location CSR scripts
the LP-gas dealer to perform such installation, could also include questions to determine if
maintenance, repair, adjustment, or service someone other than the retailer has recently
being performed The consumer shall afford performed any work on the gas system, and a
the LP-gas dealer with an opportunity to direct statement that no one should perform
12 Alabama Propane Gas Association | July / August 2020
