The term product liability refers to the legal responsibility manufacturers, designers, and retailers face if a product results in injury or death for a consumer. If a product fails to provide the level of safety the public is entitled to expect when used as directed, then it may be considered defective. There are a number of legal claims related to product liability that allow an injured party to recover financial compensation from the manufacturer or seller of a product if it is in fact deemed unsafe. Products that are often the focus of such claims include motor vehicles, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, toys, and recreational or sporting equipment
A product liability claim usually falls into one of three possible types:
- those claiming a design defect;
- those claiming a manufacturing defect; or
- those claiming a failure to warn
Sometimes dangerous or defective product claims succeed even when products are used incorrectly by the
consumer, as long as the incorrect use was foreseeable by the manufacturer (or other party in the supply chain).
Various factors are taken into account when making this determination, including:
- how and why the product has been marketed;
- what type of packaging it includes;
- what the instructions for, or warnings about the product indicate; and
- what the date is of manufacture and/or supply
Products that are older and subject to more use would not necessarily be expected to be as safe as brand new ones. Similarly, products would not necessarily be defective simply because the safety of later models has been improved upon.
For complete, up-to-date lists regarding consumer recalls, divided by category, click here for the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) website.
Click here for Playing with Safety: Dangerous Toys and the Role of America's Civil Justice System, published by AAJ.
AAJ's Dangerous Toys Fact Sheet
And for more true stories of corporations that knew their products were dangerous, read
They Knew and They Failed To…
