Product defect claims occur when a person suffers an injury due to a defective product. If you think you may have a claim, then you probably have planned for a consultation with your lawyer. The following is what you need to expect during your appointment.
Your Lawyer Will Ask About Your Injury
In personal injury law, for you to have a valid claim, you have to suffer an injury. If you have a defective product, you cannot sue because it could have hurt you. You can only file a claim if it did hurt you. For instance, if you had a coffee pot with a crack that explodes but you were not hurt by the glass, then you do not have a case of personal injury.
Your Lawyer Will Ask About Your Product
To prove a defective product injury, you have to be able to prove that the product was defective. Manufacturing errors are easier to prove than a design defect. Manufacturing errors involve flaws in a product while it was being made. For instance, if you have a pair of clippers and the clippers break due to a missing component that should have been added during the manufacturing process, then it is a lot easier to prove than a design flaw.
Now a dangerous product is not always a defective product. For instance, if you have a sharp knife and while cutting vegetables, you severely cut your finger, this is not the fault of the design. However, if you have a product that has to produce heat to run but is also extremely flammable, then this is a design defect.
Your Lawyer Will Ask About the Scenario
With the basics out of the way, it is time to further discuss how the injury occurred. You cannot file a claim against the manufacturer if you were not using the item as intended. It doesn’t matter if the injury wasn’t caused by the misuse. In most cases, though, the injury probably occurred due to misuse. Misuse does not refer to reasonable use, however. You have to be doing something out of the ordinary with the product. Likewise, if it is a foreseeable risk, the company has to warn you.
If you were injured due to a defective product, you may have a personal injury case.