§ 2084. — Information reporting.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 15USC2084]
TITLE 15--COMMERCE AND TRADE
CHAPTER 47--CONSUMER PRODUCT SAFETY
Sec. 2084. Information reporting
(a) Notification of settlements or judgments
If a particular model of a consumer product is the subject of at
least 3 civil actions that have been filed in Federal or State court for
death or grievous bodily injury which in each of the 24-month periods
defined in subsection (b) of this section result in either a final
settlement involving the manufacturer or a court judgment in favor of
the plaintiff, the manufacturer of such product shall, in accordance
with subsection (c) of this section, report to the Commission each such
civil action within 30 days after the final settlement or court judgment
in the third of such civil actions, and, within 30 days after any
subsequent settlement or judgment in that 24-month period, any other
such action.
(b) Calculation of 24-month periods
The 24-month periods referred to in subsection (a) of this section
are the 24-month period commencing on January 1, 1991, and subsequent
24-month periods beginning on January 1 of the calendar year that is two
years following the beginning of the previous 24-month period.
(c) Information required to be reported
(1) The information required by subsection (a) of this section to be
reported to the Commission, with respect to each civil action described
in subsection (a) of this section, shall include and in addition to any
voluntary information provided under paragraph (2) shall be limited to
the following:
(A) The name and address of the manufacturer.
(B) The model and model number or designation of the consumer
product subject to the civil action.
(C) A statement as to whether the civil action alleged death or
grievous bodily injury, and in the case of an allegation of grievous
bodily injury, a statement of the category of such injury.
(D) A statement as to whether the civil action resulted in a
final settlement or a judgment in favor of the plaintiff.
(E) in \1\ the case of a judgment in favor of the plaintiff, the
name of the civil action, the number assigned the civil action, and
the court in which the civil action was filed.
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\1\ So in original. Probably should be capitalized.
(2) A manufacturer furnishing the report required by paragraph (1)
may include (A) a statement as to whether any judgment in favor of the
plaintiff is under appeal or is expected to be appealed or (B) any other
information which the manufacturer chooses to provide. A manufacturer
reporting to the Commission under subsection (a) of this section need
not admit or may specifically deny that the information it submits
reasonably supports the conclusion that its consumer product caused a
death or grievous bodily injury.
(3) No statement of the amount paid by the manufacturer in a final
settlement shall be required as part of the report furnished under
subsection (a) of this section, nor shall such a statement of settlement
amount be required under any other section of this chapter.
(d) Report not deemed an admission of liability
The reporting of a civil action described in subsection (a) of this
section by a manufacturer shall not constitute an admission of--
(1) an unreasonable risk of injury,
(2) a defect in the consumer product which was the subject of
such action,
(3) a substantial product hazard,
(4) an imminent hazard, or
(5) any other admission of liability under any statute or under
any common law.
(e) Definitions
For purposes of this section:
(1) A grievous bodily injury includes any of the following
categories of injury: mutilation, amputation, dismemberment,
disfigurement, loss of important bodily functions, debilitating
internal disorder, severe burn, severe electric shock, and injuries
likely to require extended hospitalization.
(2) For purposes of this section,\2\ a particular model of a
consumer product is one that is distinctive in functional design,
construction, warnings or instructions related to safety, function,
user population, or other characteristics which could affect the
product's safety related performance.
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\2\ So in original.
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(Pub. L. 92-573, Sec. 37, as added Pub. L. 101-608, title I,
Sec. 112(b), Nov. 16, 1990, 104 Stat. 3115.)
Congressional Reports
Section 112(f) of Pub. L. 101-608 provided that:
``(1) The Consumer Product Safety Commission shall report to the
Congress on the extent to which reports made to the Commission under
section 37 of the Consumer Product Safety Act [15 U.S.C. 2084] have
assisted the Commission in carrying out its responsibilities under such
Act [15 U.S.C. 2051 et seq.]. The report--
``(A) shall provide aggregate data and not the details and
contents of individual reports filed with the Commission pursuant to
such section 37,
``(B) shall not disclose the brand names of products included in
reports under such section 15(b) or 37 [15 U.S.C. 2064(b), 2084] or
the number of reports under such sections for particular models or
classes of products, and
``(C) shall include--
``(i) a comparison of the number of reports received under
such section 37 and the number of reports received under section
15(b) of such Act,
``(ii) a comparison of the number of reports filed with the
Commission before the date of the enactment of this Act [Nov.
16, 1990] and after such date, and
``(iii) the total number of settlements and court judgments
reported under such section 37 and the total number of
rulemakings and enforcement actions undertaken in response to
such reports,
``(iv) recommendations of the Commission for additional
improvements in reporting under the Consumer Product Safety Act.
``(2) The first report under paragraph (1) shall be due February 1,
1992, and the second such report shall be due April 1, 1993.''
Section Referred to in Other Sections
This section is referred to in sections 2055, 2068 of this title.
