When purchasing a new product, we have every legal right to expect that the advertising and marketing information, warning labels, and all other materials relating to the use and outcomes of said product are accurate. In addition, we have every right to expect that the product has been appropriately designed, manufactured, tested, and quality controlled to ensure that normal usage will not result in a product failure. While more often than not, we can use products as directed without fear of an unexpected accident, there are many times when a product fails to function as expected, the marketing material has misled us about the outcomes we expect, or the design has an inherent flaw. Each of these situations can lead to serious, or even fatal, injuries.
Fortunately, the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (and many other legislative bodies and laws) focuses on protecting consumers’ rights, providing guidelines and education for businesses on producing safe products, and more. However, even the existence of a commission specifically designed to protect the safety of consumers is no guarantee that dangerous products will not be distributed and sold in the American market. That is why it is important to know that working with an experienced Florida personal injury lawyer is one of the best ways to find a path forward and get fair monetary compensation for a serious injury or wrongful death.
Contact Fasig | Brooks For a Free Consultation and Get Legal Advice About Your Product Liability Injuries
Our team of personal injury lawyers offers a free consultation for people who have been injured because of an unsafe product, design defect, product defect, a breach of warranty, or other issues where the company (or companies) responsible for their injuries must be held liable. Trying to understand the complex world of product liability lawsuits — especially while trying to deal with your injuries or the tragic loss of a loved one — can be overwhelming. That’s why we are here to help you make sense of your rights and options while giving you the space you need to focus on your recovery.
When insurance companies and manufacturers are contacted by our law firm regarding a product liability claim, they know that you mean business. If you have been hurt while using a defective or dangerous product, you may be entitled to compensation for a range of damages such as your medical expenses, lost wages as you miss work due to your injuries, and much more. Working with an insurance company without experienced legal representation can lead to unfavorable outcomes, but our product liability attorneys are ready to fight for your rights and ensure that the right parties are held responsible.
You can read more about defective product liability below, but we encourage you to contact our law firm as soon as possible to request a free consultation with a product liability attorney. The information below is to give you a general sense of how these defective or dangerous product claims work, but no two cases are alike. Speaking with a lawyer will help you get specific insight into your situation and hopefully give you confidence about the future as you focus on your recovery.
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Types Of Defective Product Cases
When we first think of the term “defective product,” it is natural to think about a product failing during usage and causing a serious accident. While this is one great example, there are a number of different defects that can lead to product liability claims, which are discussed below.
Manufacturing Defects
Defective products are often designed with consumer safety as a top priority, but defects in the manufacturing process can lead to serious accidents while a consumer is using a product appropriately. Quality checks are an essential part of the manufacturing process, and many times these defects are caught during the tooling and molding processes, assembly, or during a final QC check before the product is packaged. Unfortunately, defects may make it through the QC process and ultimately make it into the hands of a consumer.
If you suspect that your accident resulted from a manufacturing defect, we can help you make sense of your rights as a victim. Filing a claim or lawsuit against a major corporation is intimidating — and for good reason. Corporations retain the services of many defense attorneys who are focused exclusively on avoiding liability entirely or settling claims as inexpensively as possible to protect the company’s bottom line. Their tactics can be unsavory at best.
Working with product liability attorneys is one of the best ways to work aggressively towards a fair settlement or a lawsuit in the Florida court system if no resolution can be reached out of court.
Design Defects
Product companies go through rigorous alpha and beta testing phases as they work out the kinks of a new product. These testing phases gather data about real-world usage, any possible quirks or unexpected results when being used by a consumer, and a range of other potential issues that may lead to injuries.
In most cases, these testing phases effectively identify issues that the designers may not have anticipated while the product was being drafted, and the team will return to the drawing board to address these issues to avoid a defective product injury. In some cases, though, product designers may overlook a dangerous flaw entirely and accidentally launch a defective or unsafe product into the market.
These design defects are common causes of product recalls, which are aggregated by the Consumer Protection and Safety Commission. Oftentimes, many users have fallen victim to these dangerous or defective designs before a recall is implemented. Whether a recalled defective product has injured you or there is no recall in place, you may be entitled to a range of damages such as your medical bills and impacts on your earnings. You are also entitled to several “non-economic” damages, such as financial payments for things like the actual pain and suffering of your injuries.
Defective Marketing or Advertising
When a product company makes false or misleading claims about the outcomes or performance you can expect while using their product, this is an example of defective marketing. Guaranteed results that are either impossible or implausible to attain can lead to serious injuries and a variety of other damages. Those who have made the statements and distributed this information through marketing channels may be held liable via a defective product claim.
There are many different ways that defective marketing may lead to a personal injury case, but the best way to start is to connect with product liability lawyers who can help you make sense of your situation and identify the most realistic path towards a favorable outcome.
Failures to Warn
Some products have potential risks associated with normal use, and product manufacturers are expected to include extensive information about avoiding a personal injury while using a product. A failure to provide adequate instructions for safe use or warnings about these risks may mean that a company is liable for the damages that an injured consumer suffers if they did not receive appropriate warnings.
In such cases, the product may not even be dangerous or defective, but a consumer simply did not have the correct information about how to assemble, operate, or use the product. Our law firm has represented many injured clients who have been hurt while using a product in a way that they believe was safe because there was no information available to inform them otherwise.
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What To Do If You’ve Been Harmed By a Defective Product
If you or a loved one has been hurt or killed due to a manufacturing defect, you may be entitled to recover compensation that goes well beyond what the liable party is willing to pay. There are some necessary steps to take to ensure that you are getting the healthcare you require while also building a strong case to improve your chances of getting the money you deserve.
The following steps give you a general idea of how best to proceed after a defective product injury, but your top priority should always be your health and the health of your loved ones. Make sure that you get the medical attention you need before taking any other steps, and remember that you can always reach out to our law firm to get comprehensive guidance every step of the way.
Call 911
The first step after any accident is to make sure that the proper authorities are alerted and that you get immediate emergency care. When you call 911, the dispatcher will alert local police, fire, and EMTs to get to the scene of your accident. They will be able to secure the area, provide emergency medical care, and compile a police report that will contain a range of factual information about the accident, such as the events leading up to it and more.
Document Your Accident and Injuries
If you can, taking photos and videos of the scene — and including a narration over the video, if possible — will be very helpful in the aftermath as you try to make sense of the situation, provide information to an attorney, and ultimately decide how best to handle the next steps. Memory is unreliable when it comes to recalling this type of information over the course of weeks or months, but photographic and video evidence will be consistently reliable.
Get Medical Care
Whether this step involves taking an ambulance to the emergency room, checking yourself into an urgent care clinic, or scheduling additional care with your doctor, it is very important that you get ongoing medical care to work on your injuries and ensure that you are taking the necessary steps to work on your recovery. In addition to the importance of getting professional care for your needs, each visit you have with a doctor will result in additional documentation that will be very helpful as you and your lawyer work to get the money you deserve.
Report The Problem
Defective products can injure many people in the same way that you or a loved one were injured, which s why it is important to report the possible issue to keep others from suffering the same accident as you. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission provides an easy portal for reporting potential defects, as does the NHTSA for automotive-related defects.
Hire an Attorney
Working with an experienced product liability lawyer is one of the best ways to ensure that you are following all of the important steps as you work to either file a claim or lawsuit to recover compensation. Product liability is fraught with many different roadblocks, such as complex legal proceedings, aggressive defense attorneys, insurance adjusters, and more, and the experience of an attorney can help you navigate these steps while you focus on your recovery at the same time.
We encourage you to reach out to our firm to connect with a product liability lawyer as soon as possible for a free consultation and to learn more about the next steps that will move you towards a fair settlement. You do not deserve to suffer the financial consequences of a product company’s failures to keep you safe — we’re here to help.
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