Many products can be dangerous if we misuse them, but manufacturers have a responsibility to ensure their products are reasonably safe when used in a foreseeable way. If you were injured by a defective product, you might be dealing with serious injuries, which could come with medical bills, lost income, and other damages.
How can you get compensation for your losses?
A Duluth Defective Product Attorney May Be Able to Help
An experienced defective product attorney will evaluate your case and help you determine if there is evidence the product was defective. To verify if you have a strong case, we will consider the requirements for a defective product claim:
- The product was defective at the time of the accident or injury. Often, we begin by examining the item or asking an expert to examine it. For this reason, we recommend keeping the product—or what’s left of it, depending on the situation—if at all possible. Don’t have it repaired right away, as it will be essential to see the state it was in most recently.
- The defect led to the accident or injury you suffered. We will look for any evidence of how the injury happened, such as photos, videos, witness statements, and sometimes other kinds of electronic data. Your medical records will also be helpful in showing what injuries you sustained.
- The product was in substantially the same condition when it left the manufacturer’s control. A common defense to defective product claims is that the injured party modified the item in some way that made it dangerous, which would not be the manufacturer’s fault. Sometimes, this part can be challenging to prove, but there are several options we’ll consider. If the problem is widespread, we may talk with other people who experienced similar issues with the product. It’s far more difficult for the manufacturer to claim that dozens or hundreds of people modified an item in a specific way that made it dangerous. Another option is to look at other units of the same product to see if a similar defect is present.
- The injured party was using the product in a foreseeable manner. In other words, the manufacturer should have anticipated that the item could be utilized in the way you used it. This is why you often see a number of warnings on product packaging telling you not to use the product in specific ways. In general, if you were not using the product in an obviously dangerous or particularly unusual way, it’s likely that your use was foreseeable.
Georgia is a strict liability state for product liability claims. That means you don’t have to prove the manufacturer was negligent, but you do have to prove they produced the product in a defective condition that caused your injuries (as indicated by the four points above).
In some cases, the defective condition may have occurred later—for example, in transit or when the item arrived at a retailer or distributor. If we find evidence of this, you may have a claim against one of these third parties—such as the store where you bought the product—rather than the manufacturer.
Examples of Defective Products
Almost any product can be defective, and if the defect causes you injury, you may have a claim against the manufacturer or another party. Here are some common categories of products we frequently see involved in defective product cases:
Drugs and Medical Devices
Pharmaceutical companies produce many drugs that save or improve lives for millions of people, but with any drug or medical device, there is a possibility of side effects. These are expected and not necessarily indicative that a product is defective.
However, if a drug’s side effects are unreasonably dangerous and the patient doesn’t receive a fair warning about them, the drug manufacturer may be liable. “Unreasonably dangerous” side effects are often life-threatening or permanently life-altering—heart attacks, strokes, neurological damage, organ damage, etc.
If you developed severe complications while using a medication or medical device, it may be worthwhile to talk to a lawyer. We will research the drug’s warnings and contraindications and look into whether other patients have had similar experiences with the same drug.
If we can establish a pattern of severe complications associated with the drug or device, we may be able to seek compensation from the manufacturer. If it turns out the drug or device worked as intended but was prescribed incorrectly, you may have a medical malpractice case.
Motor Vehicles, Including Cars, Trucks, Boats, and Recreational Vehicles
There are a number of famous lawsuits associated with manufacturers of cars or their components. One example is the Takata airbag recall, in which numerous airbags exploded and caused injuries.
In many cases, a component manufacturer is liable rather than a car manufacturer; however, in some situations, there may be a defect in the design of the vehicle itself.
Other vehicles can also have defective parts or designs, including trucks, boats or other watercraft, buses, planes, golf carts, ATVs or other low-speed vehicles, and more. If you’ve had an accident that doesn’t make sense—because you don’t believe you or another operator are at fault—you might consider whether one of the vehicles involved was defective.
However, keep in mind that determining fault can be complicated, so we recommend speaking with an experienced personal injury attorney to learn more.
Household Appliances
You expect to be safe in your home, but sometimes, a defective household item can pose an unexpected danger. Most commonly, we see issues with electronic items.
Depending on the nature of the problem, the item could pose an electrocution hazard, or it might overheat, causing a fire or presenting a risk of burns. If you used your appliance in a standard, safe way but still suffered injuries because of it, the manufacturer may be liable.
Other household products can also be defective, including furniture, clothing, bedding, or toys. In many cases, these items may be structurally unsound or unusually flammable, present a choking hazard (especially for children), or contain toxic chemicals that harm your health.
Safety Equipment
These items are designed to prevent injuries in situations that are known to be hazardous. A bike helmet, for example, is meant to protect your head if you are hit by a car and thrown off your bicycle.
Generally, safety equipment is rated for specific situations based on how it is most likely to be used. At some point, any safety device will probably fail, so the fact that you received an injury while using safety equipment doesn’t necessarily mean there was a defect.
However, if the device failed to protect you within its own stated parameters, it’s possible the item was defective. It can be challenging to discover on your own whether your accident exceeded the product’s specifications, but a defective product lawyer can help you learn more about how your injury occurred.
Industrial Equipment
When accidents happen in construction or on other job sites, human error is often the cause. But in some situations, we may find that a piece of industrial equipment was defective and led to the accident.
You might be thinking that Worker’s Compensation covers workplace accidents. That’s true, and it’s the reason you can’t sue your employer in most situations.
That said, Worker’s Compensation has its limits, only covering medical bills and two-thirds of your typical income – it does not address other damages, such as pain and suffering. For many workers, losing a third of their income is a significant financial setback—especially if their convalescence lasts for months due to a severe injury.
While you can’t sue your employer for Worker’s Compensation-eligible injuries, you can still sue a third party if they caused the injury. Some injured workers don’t realize they can seek Worker’s Compensation and file a third-party claim against a manufacturer for a defective product, but this is possible in some cases.
If you suspect a defective product caused your workplace injury, please contact a lawyer to learn your options.
Food and Beverages
It seems as if there’s a new food or drink recall every few weeks. Unfortunately, when a food company isn’t careful about food safety standards, its customers could pay the price.
Most commonly, we see infections such as E. coli or salmonella, which can become severe or life-threatening in some situations. Occasionally, there may be other contaminants in the food, like broken glass or metal.
It’s sometimes difficult to prove that a particular food item caused your illness, but if there has been a recall and you can show that you purchased an affected product, you may be able to seek compensation for your medical bills and other damages. Again, it will be crucial to determine where the contamination occurred, as some illnesses may be linked to a restaurant rather than a food manufacturer.
How Do You Find a Duluth Defective Product Law Firm?
It can be hard to answer this question on your own. If you have concerns that a defective product might have injured you, please contact the CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm for a free consultation.
We’ll learn about your injury, answer your questions, and explain the options for pursuing compensation.
The CEO Lawyer Personal Injury Law Firm was founded by attorney Ali Awad, who quickly turned it into one of the fastest-growing personal injury law firms in the country. Through his dedication to helping injured people and their families, he has recovered millions of dollars in compensation for his clients.
When he’s not working on a case, he posts entertaining yet educational videos about legal topics for more than a million followers on social media. You can start working with his legal team by calling (470) 323-8779 today.
