If you were harmed by a defective product, you may be able to sue the manufacturer, seller or distributor of the product that did you harm. Injuries often stem from defective manufacturing, defective design, or failure to provide adequate warnings or instructions regarding how to properly use the product.
Limit To Filing A Product Liability Claim
If you were injured as a result of a defective product, under California Law, you only have two years from the date of your injury or two years from the date of the discovery to file a claim. Discovery of the injury means that you may not have been aware that the product was the underlying cause of your injury until after some time has elapsed between your use or interaction with the product and when your injury or illness manifested. For products that cause damage to properties, there is a three-year deadline for filing a claim from the date of occurrence or date of discovery.
Are There Damage Limitations?
The short answer is yes, there are damage limits. Based on something called pure comparative fault, you may be partially responsible for how the products use caused the damage thereby limiting some portion or percentage of the damage award. Because this can be a complex assessment to make on your own, it is best to consult with an experienced Personal Injury Lawyer who can go over your case with you and help you determine if you can file a claim.
How Is Product Liability Determined?
Defects In The Product Design
Some product designers may cut corners in order to push a product to market at an earlier date without extensive testing in order to ensure that the product design is not in and of itself a danger. Pressure in the marketplace can cause designs that should otherwise have additional testing and trials to be sold to the public that may have some form of technical issue. In this case, the risk of danger in contrast to the benefits test may not be met. The court will determine if the product runs an inherent danger and if there was a foreseeable danger in placing the product on the market.
Defect At The Manufacturing Stage
While a product design may have been tested well and been deemed to be safe for reproduction and sale to the public, another area in the pipeline that can create a defective product is at the actual manufacturing stage. Often companies will try to reduce their costs at the manufacturing stage or the manufacturer does not have proper testing and quality assurance in place.
A product can be manufactured with every protocol in place and best practices followed in order to ensure that the product meets a safety standard. As with all businesses, there will be products that missed a testing bin and made it out into the public. If that product causes and injury, that is considered a manufacturing defect and the injured party is then able to file a claim based on that defect for strict liability.
Missing Warning Labels
Some products can be inherently dangerous, like drills and saws and most individuals know to take great care in the handling of these products. On the other hand, other items may not come with a proper warning. In the case of a product that may cause you to be injured, the manufacturer must provide a warning label on the product.
Contact a Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney Today
Our Team is pleased to offer a FREE consultation with one of our seasoned personal injury attorneys to discuss your personal injury case. Call today 310.442.5505 to schedule an appointment. We’ll take the time to learn how your injury has impacted your life and help you understand your legal options.