Product Recalls/Defective Products
When people purchase products they have every right to believe the product is safe, and will not harm them. Unfortunately, however, all kinds of consumer products are recalled daily for defects and for causing serious injury or death. Everyday you can turn on the news and learn about motor vehicles defects, dangerous prescription drugs, hazardous baby products, and deadly food contamination that has resulted in catastrophic injuries to thousands of people. Anyone who designs, manufactures, sells, or markets products to consumers has a duty of care to keep anyone who may foreseeably use the products reasonably safe.
Product liability law governs who is responsible when consumer products seriously harm innocent victims. Product liability claims typically fall into one of three categories: design defects, manufacturing defects, and failures to warn. Design defects render products inherently dangerous, no matter how carefully they are made. Manufacturing defects include poor quality materials, faulty parts, incorrect installation, poor workmanship, lack of quality control, and lack of oversight. Failures to warn can be hazardous when manufacturers do not provide adequate instruction on proper usage, do not warn of hazards, or failing to include important information, like if a food product contains allergens.
Defective products can cause serious, sometimes life altering injuries. Examples of injuries that have been attributed to defective products include brain damage, severe burns, spinal cord injuries, head injuries, back injuries, injuries to internal organs, poisoning, amputation, paralysis, and death.
Thousands of consumer products have been recalled in the past year due to defects that have caused severe injuries and wrongful death. Some of these include:
- Defective Car Parts
- Tire failures and defects – Firestone, Goodyear
- Airbag defects – Jeep Grand Cherokee, Dodge Journey, Nissan Murano
- Seatbelt defects – BMW 1-series, GM, Chevy, Ford
- Seat back failures – Chrysler, Ford
- Children’s Products
- Drop-side cribs – Simplicity, Delta, Graco, Simmons, Jardine
- Strollers – MacLaren, Graco, Lan Enterprises
- Playpens – Baby Trend, Dorel, Small Wonders
- Booster seats – Pansy Ellen Graduate, Circo, Kids II, Compass, Dorel
- Car seats – Evenflo, Dorel Juvenile, Century
- Dangerous toys & Lead paint – Discovery Toys, Kid O, Fisher-Price
- Dangerous Drugs and Medical Products
- Johnson & Johnson products – Tylenol, Benadryl, Motrin, Sudafed, Zyrtec, Ethicon surgical sutures and drains
- DePuy hip implants
- Stents – Cypher, Taxus, Express2, Guidant
- Defibrillators & Pacemakers – Medtronic, Guidant, Defibtech
- Food Contamination
- E. coli contamination
- Salmonella contamination
- Household Product Defects
- Large and small appliances – GE dishwashers & food processors, Maytag Neptune washers
- Power tools – Stihl, Dewalt, Ryobi
- Hair dryers – Conair, Best International
If you or a loved one was catastrophically injured or wrongfully killed due to a defective product, you may be entitled to compensation for your medical bills, pain and suffering, lost wages, and mental anguish. Product liability is a complex area of the law, and you need a lawyer with a proven track record and experience in the field. Our Philadelphia product liability lawyers have successfully represented catastrophically injured clients and recovered millions of dollars in compensation on their behalf.
