Disclaimer: Please note that incidents mentioned below DID NOT occur with ThyssenKrupp products.

In a tight economy people are consistently looking for areas to cut costs, and believe me, I am certainly among this group of tight spenders. Turning off the lights when leaving a room, buying store brand peas, walking more and driving less, tanning outside instead of in a booth, etc.; these practices benefit both the budget and the economy, but there are some areas where costs just cannot be cut. Would you buy a car without tires, a bike without brakes, or a knife without a handle? Safety should always be a buyer’s number one priority, despite the extra expenses.

On July 16, 2010 an elderly couple, ages 90 and 89, were found dead in their residential elevator. The elevator, stuck between two floors, was not equipped with a telephone, leaving the couple with no way to call for help as temperatures rose into the mid 90’s. Police estimated that the couple had been dead for approximately four days before they were found. Not only could this tragic death have been prevented, it could have been prevented easily. At ThyssenKrupp Access all of our residential elevators come equipped with a telephone jack to ensure that in the event of an emergency, someone can be notified.

When browsing for a residential elevator it can be easy to choose a cheaper model, with a lesser known company in order to spare a few bucks, but it could also put an end to your life. When choosing a residential elevator, stair lift, or wheelchair lift you need to ask in depth questions about safety features and functionality. And make sure that a licensed dealer installs your unit, do NOT attempt to do this on your own. Often times this is the quickest route consumers take to cutting costs, but it can also lead to a multitude of disastrous outcomes.

In the summer of 2010, a 90-year-old woman died from being catapulted out of a faulty chairlift. Gwendoline Rhymer spun around in her chair and tipped out headfirst after restraining bolts on the seat sheared off. Her daughter, Vanessa, testified that her mother was “frightened to death” of the lift. Reports claim that Mrs. Ryhmer has complained to the lifts manufactures a week before, and they said they would send somebody out, but no one ever came. The lift had also been due to be serviced the month of her death.

This is why it is important to read reviews of the company you are choosing to go with. Make sure that they can be trusted. Reports from this incident further claimed that Mrs. Rhymer’s staircase was too steep for the type of stair lift and there were more than five years wear and tear on the machine which was installed as new just four years ago. From this information we can gather that the installation specialists were not honest with their client in recommending either a more suitable product or company, they were just after he money any way they could get it. Also, from the report we can gather that a refurbished product was being posed off as new.

In both cases it becomes clear that lives were taken from three elderly individuals because of faulty accessibility equipment. Had they spent the extra hour researching companies or the extra dollar to purchase a more trustworthy product, both of these incidents could have been avoided. Some purchases can be taken lightly, but this is not one of them.

We here at ThyssenKrupp Access are proud to say that we are one of the oldest and most trusted manufacturers of accessibility equipment since 1947.