Glendale Product Liability Attorney

Product liability cases often involve one or more of three general problems: a defective design, a manufacturing defect, or inadequate warnings and instructions.

Sometimes the problem begins before a product ever reaches the factory floor. The product may function exactly as its manufacturer intended but still create an unreasonable danger because of the way it was designed.

A claim involving defective design may require engineers or other qualified experts to analyze how the product operates, what risks were foreseeable, what safety systems were included, and whether another design could have reduced those risks.

Examples might involve vehicle safety systems, power tools without adequate guards, unstable furniture, dangerous battery systems, or equipment that creates a foreseeable crushing, cutting, fire, or rollover hazard.

A product can have a reasonably safe design but become dangerous because something went wrong while it was being manufactured or assembled.

The wrong material may have been used. A component may have been improperly installed. A weld may fail. A fastener may be missing. A battery cell may be damaged. A medication or other product may become contaminated.

These cases often require comparing the failed product with its design specifications, manufacturing standards, testing records, and other products from the same production run.

Some products involve hazards that cannot be completely eliminated through design. Manufacturers may need to provide appropriate warnings and instructions so consumers can understand those risks and use the product safely.

A failure-to-warn case may arise when an important danger was known or reasonably foreseeable but the consumer was not adequately informed about it.

The placement, wording, visibility, and accuracy of instructions or safety warnings may all become important evidence.

If you believe a defective product caused your injury, do not throw it away, repair it, alter it, or automatically return it to the manufacturer or retailer.

The physical product may be one of the most valuable pieces of evidence in the entire case.

Preserve the product and, when available, its:

• Packaging
• Instructions and manuals
• Warning labels
• Receipt or order confirmation
• Model and serial numbers
• Batteries and chargers
• Accessories or attachments
• Broken or detached components

Take photographs showing the product and the area where the incident happened. If the product was purchased online, preserve your order information, product listing, emails, and any communications you receive from the seller or manufacturer.

A recall notice may tell you to return, destroy, repair, or dispose of a product. When someone has already been seriously injured, however, preserving potential evidence can raise different considerations. Speak with an attorney before giving up possession of an injury-causing product whenever possible.

One reason product liability cases can become complicated is that numerous businesses may have participated in designing, manufacturing, distributing, selling, installing, or servicing the product.

Depending on what happened, an investigation may examine the conduct and potential responsibility of:

The manufacturer. The company that designed or manufactured the finished product is often central to the investigation.

Component manufacturers. A failed battery, tire, switch, fastener, electrical component, safety device, or other part may have been produced by a separate company.

Distributors and sellers. Arizona product liability law addresses claims involving both manufacturers and sellers, although responsibility can depend on the circumstances and legal theory involved.

Importers and other companies in the supply chain. Modern products may involve components and businesses located throughout the United States and other countries.

Installers, maintenance providers, and repair companies. A product may have been safe when manufactured but made dangerous because it was installed incorrectly, modified, poorly maintained, or improperly repaired.

Identifying the correct defendants can require tracing the product through purchase records, serial numbers, manufacturing information, corporate records, and distribution documents.

A recall can be important evidence, but the existence or absence of a recall does not automatically determine whether you have a valid product liability claim.

A company or government agency may discover a safety problem after consumers have already been injured. Other defective products may never become the subject of a formal recall.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission’s recall database allows consumers to search current and past recalls and product safety warnings for many household and consumer products.

FDA-regulated products may appear in separate federal databases, including the FDA’s information about medical device recalls and early alerts.

An attorney investigating a product case may also look beyond recalls at consumer complaints, incident reports, internal company documents, testing records, prior claims, similar product failures, engineering analysis, and regulatory information.

A defective product can cause anything from a relatively minor injury to permanent disability or death.

Product-related cases may involve burns, fractures, traumatic brain injuries, spinal injuries, amputations, crushing injuries, electrocution, organ damage, poisoning, respiratory injuries, eye injuries, internal injuries, scarring, or disfigurement.

Some consequences are not immediately apparent. A person may require additional surgery, physical therapy, pain management, counseling, mobility equipment, home assistance, or long-term medical care.

When evaluating a serious injury claim, the goal should be to understand the full effect of the injury rather than simply totaling the bills that have already arrived.

Arizona has statutes specifically addressing product liability cases.

A.R.S. § 12-681 defines a product liability action broadly and includes claims involving defects associated with design, manufacturing, construction, installation, assembly, testing, packaging, labeling, warnings, instructions, sale, use, and consumption.

Deadlines are especially important. A.R.S. § 12-542 generally establishes a two-year limitations period for actions involving personal injury. Exactly when a claim accrues and whether another rule affects the deadline can depend on the facts, so someone injured by a product should not assume they have two full years to begin investigating the case.

Arizona’s comparative fault law can also become relevant. Under A.R.S. § 12-2505, damages may be reduced according to a claimant’s percentage of fault when comparative negligence applies.

A manufacturer or insurance company may argue that the product was misused, modified, improperly maintained, or used contrary to instructions. Those arguments make it important to preserve the product and document exactly how it was being used when the incident occurred.

Your health comes first. Obtain appropriate medical treatment and make sure your healthcare providers understand how the injury occurred.