How Does The Law Deal With Dangerous Products?

Every day people are hurt by unreasonably dangerous products.  How does the law handle these types of claims?

 

These claims are called product liability claims.  They occur when individuals are injured by unreasonably dangerous products. Any defective product placed into what is called "the stream of commerce" can be a defective product. For instance, a heating pad that doesn't have an automatic turn off switch and as a result a person gets burned.  Or, an electric fence that doesn't have a warning light to let people know the fence is turned off an it is safe to touch it. Even a dangerously hot cup of coffee qualifies as a product.

 

The manufacturer (the entity that made the product), the distributor (think "the middle man") and the seller are all equally responsible if somone is hurt by the product. This is called joint and several liability. For example, the distributor brings in a product from China.  It then sells the product to a store which eventually sells the product to you.  You get injured by the product.  Your attorney may choose to not bring the claim against the manufacturer because the company in China would be extremely difficult to sue and even if you did you may not ever collect from them.  Even though the distributor and seller didn't make the product (and so long as they did not modify it), they are just as at fault as the manufacturer.  Why?  Because the law chose to protect the innocent buyer of the product.  The distributor and seller should bear the risk. They are the ones allowing the product to be placed in the hands of the innocent consumer. They also made the choice to put that product into "the stream of commerce" i.e. make it available to you.

 

The buyer of the product cannot have changed the product. And, the product must have been used for its intended purpose.  In some states, you have to show that there was a reasonable alternative design available.  For instance, in the heating pad example you might have to show that there was a reasonable design such as a timer could have been placed on the pad and that the design was not too costly.  In the states I practice, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington, that is generally NOT the case.

 

If you have been hurt by a defective product, make sure you save everything you can.  The packaging, the receipt, and especially the product. In some instances you will want to save your clothes.

 

If you have been injured by a product you beleive is defective, you have rights and potential remedies.  We would be happy to discuss those with you.