Consumers are injured or killed by defective products far more often than most people realize. From defective toys to defective furniture and defective automobiles, each one of these products poses a serious risk of injury and death to those who use or are exposed to them. Product liability law provides a remedy for victims of defective products by allowing for the recovery of damages suffered by an injured victim or a deceased victim’s survivors from certain defendants involved in the production and distribution of defective products that have caused victims’ injuries or deaths.
The Killino Firm’s Miami, Florida, defective products lawyers have extensive experience with all types of defective products cases, including those arising out of car or other motor vehicle crashes, the use of defective equipment in medical care, and many others. If you were injured or a family member was killed in an accident of any kind and you suspect that a defective product was a cause of your injuries or family member’s death, you may be entitled to compensation through legal action. Contact The Killino Firm’s Miami defective products lawyers at 305-559-6340 for a cost-free evaluation of your case and additional information about your legal options.
Legal Liability for Injuries and Deaths Caused by Defective Products
Products may be considered defective under product liability law if they fall into any one of three categories. Defects in the design or manufacturing stage of product production can render a product defective under product liability law. The failure to warn of certain dangers associated with a product or its use may also be considered to make a product dangerous, and therefore defective, to consumers.
Product liability actions may be brought as negligence, strict liability, or breach of warranty cases. Breach of warranty actions are generally filed by plaintiffs who have sustained economic loss as a result of purchasing a defective product. This loss can occur through a breach of either express or implied warranties regarding a particular product. Express warranties are representations made by a manufacturer or seller of a product regarding its safety and other features. Implied warranties are promises that are considered to have been impliedly made by any manufacturer of a product released for sale to the public that the product will not cause the user harm if the product is used as it is intended to be used. Anyone who is reasonably expected to use a particular product may bring a breach of warranty action for the breach of either or both of these warranties.
In a negligence product liability action, the plaintiff must establish that the negligence of the defendants was a cause of the defect that resulted in an accident victim’s injury or death. In strict liability product liability actions, however, the plaintiff is relieved of the requirement of proving negligence on the part of the defendants. For this reason, product liability actions instituted to recover damages for a victim’s personal injury or death are usually brought as strict liability claims. In these cases, the plaintiff must establish that the product was defective at the time the victim’s accident occurred, that the product was being used as intended, and that the defect was a cause of the victim’s injury or death.
Strict liability actions may be brought against the manufacturers of defective products as well as others in the chain of a defective product’s distribution. If a product is dangerous as a result of a defect that occurred in the design stage of its production, the designer of the product may be included as a defendant and found strictly liable for injuries or deaths caused by the product defect. Others in the chain of distribution from manufacturer to consumer that may be found liable in strict liability actions include the assemblers, suppliers, wholesalers, and retailers of a defective product.
Plaintiffs in such actions may include not only the person who originally purchased a product but also persons who used a defective product in the manner in which it was intended to be used. In some cases, a victim is injured or killed as a result of someone else’s use of a defective product. This can occur, for example, when a victim is injured or killed in a car or other motor vehicle crash and the crash was caused by a defect in a vehicle other than the one occupied by the victim. The victim or victim’s survivors may, nevertheless, be entitled to recover damages suffered as a result of the victim’s injuries or death from the manufacturers and others in the chain of distribution of the defective vehicle.
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The Killino Firm’s Miami, Florida, defective products attorneys are recognized nationwide for their expertise with all types of defective products cases. If you have been injured or one of your family members has been killed as a result of a defect in any kind of product, The Killino Firm can help you obtain justice from those responsible for your injuries or loved one’s death. Contact The Killino Firm at 305-559-6340 for experienced assistance with your defective products case.
