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If you have purchased a product but its defective design has hurt you or caused an injury. Then you can legally sue the manufacturer for the faulty product. While there are several legal theories describing product lawsuits filed against manufacturers. This post looks at product liability claims and their types.
Product Liability Claim – Overview
Manufacturers and sellers are liable for any injuries and loss caused to the customer due to their defective product under the product liability claim.
As the name suggests, product liability is a concept through which manufacturers and sellers of products are legally responsible for reimbursing customers and users of the product. In case there are any manufacturing flaws that lead to customer damage or injury. Product liability lawsuits fall under the area of law known as product liability law. This allows the customer harmed by a product to legally sue the manufacturer for damages that occur against the producer or seller of that goods. Since product liability law is a branch of private law. Public law doesn’t look at it as it deals with the relationship of an individual citizen with the state.
Types of Product Liability Claims
Now that you know what a product liability claim is let’s take a look at the three different types of product liability claims.
Design Defect Product Liability Claims
They relate this type of product liability claim to the defective design of the product. When this defect leads to damage or injury to the customer. Claims against any product that has a defective design that can make the product inherently dangerous to use fall under this category. Because the defective design is a fault of the manufacturer. Moreover, it is also the fault of the seller who knowingly sold a product with a defective design. A classic example could be a top-heavy automobile that is defectively designed. And manufactured products that can significantly increase the risk of rollover. Such a vehicle has a design defect that is a result of an error made during the manufacture of the product. And makes a product that could be the cause of a product liability claim.
In several states around the country. They consider a product defective when there is a design defect that can be unreasonably dangerous. Especially, for the user or the person who is in close proximity to the product. So, the end user of the product is not the only one that can make a claim in a design defect product liability claim. In fact, anyone who is not the actual user of the product could also make the claim. Like a bystander who gets injured or harmed by the faulty product design.
Manufacturing Defects Product Liability Claims
The other most common type of product liability claim is the manufacturing defects product liability claim. This type of product liability claim is based on the manufacturing defect where the manufacturer declares that the original design of the product is completely safe for use. However, an error in the manufacturing process makes the product unsafe for use.
A manufacturing defect occurs when the product fails to comply with the intended design and features of the product, which eventually leads to an increased risk of damage to the user. In this type of product liability law, if a product is unreasonably dangerous because of its design and fails to perform as safely as claimed, the end user of the product can sue the manufacturer in case of an accident or damage resulting due to the product.
One of the most commonly cited examples of manufacturing defects in product liability claims. Could be a set of tires that the manufacturer claims would support the weight of the vehicle. While withstanding wear and tear. However, during the manufacturing process, certain errors in the process lead to a manufacturing defects. These result in a serious accident. In that case, the user can sue the manufacturer for a faulty product. And the claim would fall under the category of manufacturing defects product liability claim.
Labeling or Warning Defects Product Liability Claims
If the manufacturer fails to label the product appropriately or doesn’t warn about the inherent danger of the product, in that case, the end user can sue the manufacturer in case of any damage or injury. Let’s take the example of prescription medications where the end user may experience adverse side effects. In case the manufacturer of the medicine fails to disclose all the possible side effects completely, the end user can file a claim against the pharmaceutical company for not disclosing all possible side effects of the medicine.
One of the classic cases for this type of product liability claim is when a customer sued the famous fast food chain Mcdonald’s after she spilled a cup of hot coffee which resulted in severe burns. The customer claimed that there was no warning on the product which resulted in the accident. During the proceedings, the fast-food chain admitted that there were no warnings for the customers to know about the nature of the damage that can incur while handling this product.
Hire a Product Liability Lawyer
If you have experienced damage due to a defective product. Then you need to get in touch with a product liability lawyer. They will help you can seek compensation for the damages that you have suffered. When you work with a product liability lawyer, they help you file a product liability claim. So you can get compensation for the damages that you have incurred due to the use of a defective product.
If you have questions about the liability of the e-commerce shop or retailer the item was purchased from, click here.
