What You Should Know About Product Liability Claims in Florida
When you buy a product off a shelf in a store, even if it is a digital shelf in an online store, you have the right as an American consumer to assume that product is safe to use. As long as you follow any provided instructions carefully and do not intentionally try to tamper with or misuse the product, you should be able to expect that your health or that of others will not be jeopardized by a defect or inherent danger of the product. This is the basic premise of product liability laws in Florida and the rest of the country.
The other side of product liability is the manufacturer’s unshakable duty to only create and sell products that will not cause unreasonable, undue harm to consumers. There are obviously products with innate dangers, like kitchen knives and firearms, but even these have to be made and sold responsibly. A manufacturer’s failure to prevent defects and try to stop consumer harm can make them accountable for any damages put forth in a consequent product liability claim.
How do manufacturers become liable for a hazardous product defect?
- By design: Some products are dangerous just by their design yet are manufactured anyway due to company oversights. For example, imagine a safety helmet designed to be produced with thin, brittle plastic. It would be defective by design since it could not provide actual safety to the user.
- During manufacturing: A product might be safe by design but become dangerous due to a manufacturing error that is not caught by the company before it is pushed to market. For example, a toaster receives the wrong wiring on the manufacturing line, making it prone to bursting into flames when used regularly.
- Through lack of instruction: Product manufacturers have to give consumers ample instructions about how to use their products, especially when there is the possibility of it becoming dangerous with unintentional misuse. For example, a power tool with safety instructions becomes dangerous to the user, even if they are familiar with similar tools they have used in the past.
Examples of common or newsworthy defective products include:
- Hoverboards
- Takata airbags
- Other car parts, like seatbelts and tires
- Kitchenaid® food processors
- Recalled pharmaceuticals
- Hip implants and other medical devices
Let The Pittman Firm, P.A. Handle Your Product Liability Claim
The trouble with trying to file and win a product liability claim is that you may be accusing a major corporation of wrongdoing. They will not hesitate to challenge your claim at every turn and meet you head-on with a team of defense attorneys. What will you do if you do not have legal expertise yourself?
Come to The Pittman Firm, P.A. and let Florida Product Liability Attorney Wes Pittman manage your claim and represent you when it counts. Equipped with 30+ years of injury case and liability law experience, Attorney Pittman has the skills, knowledgeability, and tenacity needed to elevate your claim to the next level. Find out more about the law firm’s services by calling (850) 764-0383 and asking for a complimentary case review.