Plaintiff Claims Faulty Repair Job Led To Scalding Shower
On March 4, 2004, plaintiff Daniel Feliciano, 84, was scalded by water while taking a shower in his apartment in the Bronx. An in-home health-care aide was supposed to be assisting him when a surge of hot water scalded his leg and torso. He sustained second-degree burns.Feliciano sued the building’s owners and managers, Concourse Area Housing Corp., Concourse Redevelopment Co. L.P., Graphic Building Systems Inc. and Rental Management Association. He alleged that the defendants were negligent in their maintenance of the building’s plumbing system.Concourse Area Housing commenced a third-party suit against a company that had repaired the building’s plumbing, Pelham Plumbing and Heating Corp., and the company that employed Feliciano’s in-home health-care aide, Premier Healthcare. Concourse Area Housing alleged that Pelham Plumbing and Heating was negligent in its repair of the plumbing system and that Premier Healthcare’s employee negligently failed to supervise Feliciano’s shower.
Feliciano claimed that the shower delivered an unexpected surge of scalding hot water. His counsel submitted evidence of a prior complaint for hot-water surges to the City of New York Department for Housing Preservation and Development. Thus, plaintiff’s counsel contended that the direct defendants had notice of the water-temperature problems.
Evidence indicated that the direct defendants had hired Pelham Plumbing and Heating to fix a mixing valve two weeks prior to the incident. The direct defendants claimed that Pelham Plumbing and Heating improperly installed the valve.
Pelham Plumbing and Heating contended that a plumber returned to the building one day after the accident and found that the valve had been tampered with. It claimed that the direct defendants had broken the valve by trying to increase the water temperature after receiving complaints from tenants that the water was too cold. The plumber claimed that he found that the water was surging at 180 degrees.
The direct defendants also argued that Premier Healthcare was liable for the actions of its aide, who had left Feliciano alone in the shower when specifically instructed not to do so.
Feliciano sustained second-degree burns with disfiguring scars of 12% of his body surface, including his legs and torso. He was hospitalized for one month, after which he underwent about five weeks of rehabilitation. He did not undergo any skin grafts. He estimated his hospital and rehabilitation expenses at $87,000. He sought recovery of those expenses and damages for his past and future pain and suffering.
The parties agreed to a $960,000 settlement, which was established via the guidance of mediator Bertram Gelfand, of National Arbitration and Mediation. Pelham Plumbing and Heating’s insurer agreed to contribute $110,000; Premier Healthcare’s insurer agreed to contribute $250,000; and the remaining defendants’ insurer agreed to contribute $600,000.