Sacramento Product Liability Lawyers

When Americans buy consumer goods, they have a right to expect that the goods will do what the manufacturers say they will do. They also have an absolute right to expect that they will not be injured in any way through the use of those products, provided they use them as intended.

In California, when people buy goods and are injured because the product was poorly designed or poorly put together, or if they weren’t warned about the potential dangers of using the product, they frequently call a Sacramento defective product attorney for advice.

Types Of Liability

A product liability attorney generally deals with three major types of claims. It doesn’t matter if the defective product is something as big as an SUV or as small as a child’s toy, the same rules of law apply relating to:

• Manufacturing defects
• Design defects
• Failure to warn (commonly referred to as “marketing defects”)

Manufacturing Defects

This type of claim usually involves the actual process of making the defective product. In most cases, the materials that were used weren’t adequate, or the workmanship was shoddy.

In such cases, it doesn’t matter if the design of the product met all California and federal safety standards. If it was poorly put together or dangerous components were used, the manufacturer could be held liable for any injuries or damages caused.

Design Defects

Defective product attorneys also represent clients who have been injured by products which were poorly designed and are therefore inherently dangerous. To prove such a case, the product liability attorney would have to satisfy a jury that the product fails to satisfy what could ordinarily be expected of it by an average consumer, and that those failings lead the product to be unsafe.

In addition, if the risks of using the product outweigh any potential benefits, it can be deemed to be of a defective design, and the manufacturer again has a case to answer.

Failure To Warn

Some products are well designed and well built, so they couldn’t be the subject of a lawsuit filed by a Sacramento defective product attorney, right?

If a product is potentially dangerous in a non-obvious way, it is up to the manufacturer to provide adequate warnings to the consumer of those dangers. Failure to warn consumers is grounds for a product liability claim.

The “failure to warn” premise is something of a gray area, because it’s up to the consumer to use the product for the purposes for which it was intended. The manufacturer, for example, couldn’t be expected to foresee that someone might use a chainsaw to carve a turkey. Anyone who did so, then cut off a finger instead of a drumstick, would not really be in a position to file a claim. If, however, a person is using a product in a way they could reasonably have been anticipated to do, then it is up to the manufacturer to provide the relevant warnings.

How Do I Go About Filing A Claim?

Many people think they should just take the dangerous, defective product back to the store. Others, like people who find they were sold a vehicle with defective brakes, have no idea of how to take on a giant car manufacturer. Again, they complain to the dealer and are generally given a cup of coffee, a loan car, an apology (maybe) and a promise to put the car right.

Whether you were injured by a coffee pot or a snowmobile, the fact is, you shouldn’t have to put up with it. Nor should you be stuck with the medical bills. Therefore, the first person you should speak to if you or a family member has been hurt by a defective product is to contact a product liability attorney.

As well as getting your own medical bills and lost income covered, by filing a defective product lawsuit, you could be saving someone else from being seriously injured, or worse. Don’t be put off by the retailer or the manufacturer telling you that what happened was simply a “one-off,” or even worse, that you must have done something wrong yourself, or you didn’t read the instructions carefully enough, or that you must have misused or abused their perfectly safe product.

Those are all excuses that injured victims frequently hear before they finally get the services of a good defective product attorney. You’ll certainly find that the attitude of the manufacturer will change once they find out you have experienced legal representation!

What Kind Of Damages Can I Be Awarded?

Getting injured in California is an expensive business. When someone is injured by a defective product, it’s frequently not just that person who suffers. The medical bills, lost wages and ongoing treatment can put horrible strains on entire families, and Sacramento defective product attorneys feel this just isn’t fair. As such, if you or a member of your family has been hurt by a defective product, the attorney will file a claim to recover:

• All your medical expenses
• Any lost wages or other income
• Damages for pain and suffering and loss of quality of life
• Any potential future loss of earnings due to an inability to work as normal
• The cost of any ongoing treatment, including plastic surgery to repair scars

Dangerously defective products are more than just a waste of money. They can be lethal, life-changing instruments of destruction. People who get hurt by badly built or poorly designed goods, or who were not warned about the hidden dangers of using a product are entitled to be compensated for any damage caused.

If you live in the Sacramento area and have been injured by a faulty product, no matter how big or small, contact an experienced Sacramento defective product attorney without delay. Do it quickly, because statutes of limitation for filing claims do apply, and the quicker you act, the more likely it is that you’ll be saving someone else from getting hurt.