subject: Understanding The Elements Of A Product Liability Claim [print this page] A product is considered defective if an ordinary consumer or user could not have anticipated the danger the product created. The defect may be caused by the way the product was assembled, manufactured, tested, inspected, or packaged.
Elements That Need To Exist To Win a Product Liability Case
Three key elements that must be present to have a viable product liability lawsuit are: the product causing the harm must have been in a defective condition, the defect must have existed when the product left the manufacturer's control, and the defect must have caused your injuries and damages.
Types of Defective Products
Three types of product defects incur liability in manufacturers and suppliers: design defects, in which the defects are inherent and exist before the product is manufactured, making the item unreasonably dangerous to use due to a design flaw; manufacturing defects that occur during the construction or production of the item, with only a few out of many products of the same type being flawed; and defects in marketing in which improper instructions and failures to warn consumers of latent dangers in the product are at issue.
Basis for Products Liability Claims
The basis for a product liability claim can be negligence, strict liability, or breach of warranty of fitness. Product liability is generally considered a strict liability offense, meaning that the wrongs do not depend on the degree of carefulness by the defendant but by the defectiveness of the product. Irrelevant is whether or not the manufacturer or supplier exercised great care; if there is a defect in the product that causes harm, the manufacturer will be liable for it.
Entitlement of Damages
People injured by defective products are entitled to receive monetary compensation for pain and suffering, medical bills, lost wages, loss of earning capacity, disability and disfigurement, and emotional distress.
