DEFECTIVE PRODUCT ACCIDENT INJURIES
What is a Defective Product?
Each year, thousands of injuries in the U.S. are caused by dangerous or defective products that include all sorts of consumer goods such as toys for infants and children, medications, vehicle-related recalls and defects, and dangerous chemicals. Product liability law addresses who is responsible for defective or dangerous products and differs from ordinary injury law with its own set of rules and procedures.
Product liability law, also called products liability, oversees the accountability of manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, and vendors for damages caused by dangerous or defective products. The goal of product liability laws is to help protect consumers from dangerous products while holding manufacturers, distributors, and retailers responsible for putting these products into the marketplace, particularly if they knew or should have known that these products were dangerous or defective. Depending upon the jurisdiction, the liability of the various parties involved as the product passes from the manufacturer to the consumer will vary.
Product liability lawsuits differ from most types of personal injury claims. Instead of concentrating on the defendants treatment of the specific plaintiff, they involve proving that the manufacturer, retailer, distributer or supplier produced or mishandled a product either inherently unsafe, unsafe due to mishandling or contamination after production, or unsafe due to a lack of proper instruction or warning to consumers about risks associated with the product. In order to recover in a products liability, the product must be unsafe when used in the manner for which it was intended, and must not have been substantially modified from its original form. It can be a defense to product liability claims that the user of the product was aware of the defect yet proceeded to use the product anyway. In addition to product liability lawsuits, plaintiffs can sometimes recover for injuries from dangerous products through simple negligence lawsuits, as well as breach of warranty lawsuits aimed at either express or implied warranties by product makers that their goods will be fit and safe for their intended purpose.
Product liability frequently involves retail items, but applied to pretty much anything that can be sold. It is possible, for example, for a product liability action to arise from a defect in real estate such as a leaky wall or poorly installed vapor barrier that causes mold to grow inside a wall or from a product used in real estate, such as defective siding.
Different Types of Products
The following are a few examples of defective products:
Defective Toys for Infants and Children. Dangerous or defective infant and children’s products are recalled quite regularly, often after one or several children have suffered serious injuries or even death. Like other products liability claims, those relating to children’s products can be made against manufacturers, suppliers, distributors and retailers of the goods. This can include toys, children’s equipment such as cribs, strollers, and car seats, baby food, as well as other products sold for use by babies and children. Product liability claims can result in compensation for serious injuries, illness, or deaths caused by products that are unduly dangerous either in their very design through a manufacturing flaw, through unsafe handling along the path from manufacturer to the consumer, or through inadequate warnings of risks. This can mean drop-side cribs with a design that has been federally banned after causing multiple deaths, toys inherently unsafe because they contain toxic chemicals, toys rendered unsafe through a failure to warn of serious risks, as well as goods which may have once been safe, such as infant formula, but which became tainted at some point along chain of distribution.
Dangerous Consumer Products. General goods that people buy and use every day, such as cigarettes or contact lens solution, can sometimes cause injuries for which manufacturers, along with retailers and parties along the supply chain can be held liable.
Defective drugs. Some medications on the market pose dangers to consumers and many people have suffered injuries as a result of these defective drugs. In recent years, these have included Accutane, Ambien, Cialis, Crestor, and Paxil, to name a few. Anyone who has received injuries as a result of ingesting dangerous or defective drugs can bring products liability lawsuits against pharmaceutical companies that fail to test drugs properly or manufacture them in unsafe ways. This is true for both prescription drugs and over-the-counter medication.
We Can Help
If you have suffered an injury caused by a defective product, The Personal Injury Help Center can help you find the help and resources you need. Our network of personal injury lawyers, experts and professionals strive for justice and fairness in the form of compensation for victims of defective product injuries.
We are dedicated to seeking justice and fair financial compensation for those who are facing a future that has been forever altered by the negligent act of another. When you are looking to file an injury claim, you need to know that you have the best working on your side.
Over the years, our team has been successful in recovering rightly-owed compensation in verdicts and settlements on behalf of our clients. This is a testimony to our ability to help our clients in some of the most complex injury litigation.
When filing a defective product injury claim, you only have one opportunity to secure a settlement; once you accept an offer, you cannot turn around to get more money if you realize that it will not cover the extent of the damages. To help you better understand what the settlement should cover, the team at The Personal Injury Help Center will help you:
Make sure your injury claim covers all of your medical expenses. This includes hospital bills, rehabilitation, future medical costs, costs of medication, future doctor visits, caretaker costs, and reconstructive surgery.
Make sure the settlement covers monetary damages. This includes property damage or car damage, lost earnings and wages, and future loss of earnings.
Make sure you are compensated for other miscellaneous damages. These include pain and suffering, loss of enjoyment of life, and out of pocket expenses.
To learn more about Defective Product Injury claims and find out how you can obtain compensation for the injuries that you have sustained in any type of accident, complete the Free Case Evaluation form.