Product liability is a complex area of personal-injury law, and the success of a claim hinges on the strength of the evidence. Claimants not only must prove that they suffered an injury, but they also must tie the injury to a specific product defect, and prove that they were using the product as a reasonable person would have used it.
Companies that design, manufacture and sell products often have legal teams to defend them against lawsuits. A product liability lawyer can help you navigate the claims process, avoid mistakes and aggressively fight for the maximum compensation.
If you were injured by a product defect in Florida, contact the Law Offices of Needle & Ellenberg, PA. A product liability lawyer in Fort Lauderdale will gather evidence and handle settlement negotiations on your behalf.
Call 305-290-1736 to schedule a consultation. You can also learn more about personal-injury claims in Florida by visiting http://personal-injury.usattorneys.com/florida/.
Here are four elements to prove in a product liability claim:
- You suffered a loss or injury.
According to Online Sunshine, you need an actual injury or loss to claim product liability. For example, this may be a burn from an exploding kettle or a cut from a malfunctioning power tool. If the product malfunctioned and you were almost – but not actually – injured then you do not have a claim.
You may have a claim if the product defect destroyed a valuable object. However, if you broke the object in the process of avoiding an injury, then you do not have a claim.
- The product was defective.
Just because you were injured by a product does not mean that you have a product liability claim. For example, amputating a finger is a possibility when using a knife. This does not necessarily mean that the knife was unreasonably dangerous. However, if a defect during the design, manufacture or sell of the knife caused it to malfunction, then you may have a claim.
- The defect caused your loss or injury.
After proving that the product was defective, your accident attorney must demonstrate how the defect caused your specific loss or injury.
- You were using the product as a reasonable person would have used it.
If you were injured while using a product for an unintended purpose, then you may not be able to recover compensation. For example, if you are speeding and a defective tire busts, which causes an accident and subsequent injuries, the manufacturer may argue that your speeding contributed to the incident.
However, manufacturers must consider how a reasonable person would use the product – even if that use is not stated in the instructions or owner’s manual. If your product liability lawyer can prove that you were using the product in a reasonable way yet a malfunction still caused your injuries, then your claim may be successful.
If you were injured by a product defect, contact a Fort Lauderdale accident attorney from the Law Offices of Needle & Ellenberg, PA. We have been representing the rights of the injured in Florida for more than 50 combined years. Call 305-290-1736 to schedule a consultation.