Easton Product Liability Lawyer
Most of us use a variety of consumer products in our day-to-day lives and in doing so, count on the manufacturers of those products to exercise due care when designing and manufacturing them. When they fail to fulfill this duty, they can be held strictly liable for any injuries sustained by consumers. Basically, this means that the injured consumer doesn’t have to prove carelessness or negligence on the manufacturer’s part in order to recover. Instead, he or she only needs to prove that the product was defective. Filing a product liability claim can, however, still be complicated, so if you were hurt by a defectively designed product, consider reaching out to an experienced Easton product liability lawyer for help.
Strict Liability for Defective Products
In 1966, Pennsylvania adopted the standard of strict liability when holding manufacturers accountable for their production of defective consumer products. Under this standard, a person who is injured by a defective product doesn’t have to prove that the manufacturer was careless in the way it designed its products to succeed when filing a products liability claim. Instead, Pennsylvania manufacturers, as well as any seller of the product, will face liability if:
- A product was defective;
- The product was defective when it left the manufacturer or seller’s hands; and
- The defect caused harm to a consumer.
A product is considered defective if it doesn’t have all of the elements required to make it safe for its intended use, or if it contains an element that makes it unsafe for its intended use.
Types of Product Defects
There are three main types of defects from which a consumer product can suffer (and for which a manufacturer or seller can be held liable), including:
- Manufacturing defects, which exist when a product was designed correctly, but there was a flaw in its construction;
- Design defects, which occur when a product lacked proper safety features, or included an unsafe element that could have been eliminated by a change in design; and
- Absent or ineffective instructions or warnings.
The kinds of evidence needed to establish that a product was defective will vary depending on the type of defect in question. For instance, to prove a manufacturing defect existed, a plaintiff will need to provide evidence of a malfunction and counter any arguments of abnormal use or alternative causes for the accident. To demonstrate that a product was defectively designed, on the other hand, a plaintiff will probably need expert testimony showing that the design was unsafe and establishing that a safer alternative was possible. Finally, to prove that warnings were inadequate, a claimant will need to provide proof of the types of instructions that were included with the product.
Free Consultations Available
If you were injured by a defective consumer product, you may be unsure of your next steps. The dedicated Easton product liability lawyer at O’Donnell Law Offices is here to help. To start working on your own case, call our office at 570-821-5717 and set up a free consultation or reach out to us via online message.
