Product Defects
The most common defects in a product are design, manufacturing, and inadequate warnings or instructions. Product Liability is an area of the law that allows individuals harmed by defective products to seek compensation for their injuries.
More than one corporation can be financially responsible for the injury or death
When a product hurts or kills someone, both state and federal laws hold manufacturers, sellers, and those in the distribution chain legally responsible. The number of corporations that may share responsibility for the harm can become complicated quickly. Many different companies can be partially to blame for an innocent victim’s severe injuries or wrongful death.
Sad Reality is that Recalls of Products Happen Every Day
Thousands of products have been recalled due to the risk of death and serious injury. The range of defective products is extensive. Recalls can be either voluntary or forced upon the company responsible for the product. Lists exist today that are continually updated with information on products that are being recalled by either the companies themselves or a variety of governmental agencies:
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
Motor vehicles; motor vehicle equipment; child safety seats; tires - Food & Drug Administration
Food; drugs; medical devices; vaccines; blood & biotics; animal & veterinary products; cosmetics; radiation-emiting products; tobacco products - Consumer Product Safety Commission
appliances; clothing; electrical products; electronics; furniture; household products; children’s products; sports and exercise products; outdoor products - Enviromental Protection Agency
pesticides; rodenticides; fungicides; vehicle emission testing; air and radiation emissions.
Everyday, Trusted Products Can Be Dangerous and Deadly
Defects in products that are used everyday without a second thought occur in only three ways:
- either the design makes the product inherently unsafe;
- there are manufacturing errors for that particular product; or
- there are marketing errors ( flawed instructions or safety warnings, or the label is just plain wrong).
Usually, the most dangerous products are those that people rely upon to be safe in daily use. One particularly tragic example is child restraint systems. Each year, children are seriously injured and killed in vehicle collisions and car crashes due to defective car seats. These child safety seat defects can relate any number of flaws: buckles, harnesses, shell designs, even the padding within the seat.
Some other examples of dangerous and deadly products that Texans and Americans through out the country have relied upon, only to be seriously hurt or killed include:
- all-terrain vehicles
- children’s toys
- lawn mowers
- go-karts
- heaters
- power cords
- furniture causing serious burn injuries
- defects in personal watercraft (boats, jetskis, etc.)
- power tools
- industrial machinery
- helmets
- ladders and scaffolding
If you've had an accident that caused an injury from the use of a defective product, or have survived someone who may have died as a result of injuries sustained from the use of defective product, it's important that you know your rights under the law. There is only a limited amount of time that the law allows a claim or lawsuit to be pursued, and if the deadline is passed then the right to remedy is forever barred.
If you or a loved one has been injured or harmed by the wrongful actions of another person, company, or governmental entity, then please feel free to call for a free initial consultation. Se habla espanol.
Knowledge, Persistence, Integrity: Wigington Rumley Dunn & Ritch, L.L.P
Email at legalinfo@Wigrum.com – Toll free at (866) 494-4786