Manufacturers and distributors of products are legally liable for damages and injuries that occur as a result of product failure.
For more than a decade, Weston Law has been regarded as a leading personal injury and product liability law firms in Bloomington and the state of Minnesota.
What makes a product dangerous in Minnesota?
The Minnesota civil law recognizes that distributors, retailers and manufacturers can profit a lot from widespread distribution of their many products.
Because of that, these providers are held to higher standards. A product liability suit can be a lot more in-depth than a regular negligence lawsuit. With other personal injuries such as burn injuries, property owners are held to a standard of acting like a reasonable person.
With manufacturers, one simple question needs to be answered: ‘’was the product unreasonably dangerous’’? If the answer is ‘’yes’’, then a producer can be held liable in court.
An experienced product liability attorney can help you get compensation for damages caused by dangerous products. Below, you will find different types of product liability claims that can happen in Minnesota.
Types of Defective Product Liability Claims
There are 3 main types of defective product liability claims. These are:
- Dangerous product design
- Manufacturer mistake
- Failure to provide adequate warning
We’ll discuss these 3 topics in a bit more detail here.
Dangerous Product Design
This happens when the product’s design is defective or even dangerous. These claims usually occur when an entire line of products has errors. It’s not just a small error in the manufacturing process.
An example of this are sunglasses that fail to protect the eyes from ultraviolet rays. Although the product was made according to specifications, this is a dangerous error. The entire line of product should be discontinued and removed from stores.
Manufacturer Mistake
One of the most common types of product liability claims. This happens when the product was defectively manufactured. The product that caused injury is different from all of the other ones on the shelf. Usually it’s an error that happened in the factory where the products are fabricated.
An example could be a bicycle with malfunctioning brakes. When injured, it’s important to prove that the mistake was due to the manufacturer mistake, and not because of poor or dangerous riding.
Failure to provide adequate warning
The third and last type of product liability claims involve failure to provide adequate warning. It can be that the instructions about the product’s proper use were very unclear.
Failure to warn a user for a product that can be fairly dangerous can make the manufacturer liable. The injury must come from failure to warn or properly instruct the user. If the user just didn’t bother reading the instruction, or he made a mistake, then there is no product liability claim.
Identifying Responsible Parties in Product Liability Injuries
Sometimes it can be hard to identify a party that is ‘’at fault’’ in a product liability case. Choose an experienced firm like Weston Law that has the knowledge to handle complex product liability injury cases.
Every case is unique, and there might be more than one party that needs to be blamed. We help determine who is liable for the incident.
Injured By a Dangerous Product? We May Be Able to Help
Manufacturers, retailers and distributors can earn millions from dealing in consumer products. But they also need to face liability when those products cause injuries to the people of Minnesota.
At Weston Law, our Minnesota product liability lawyers understand this complicated area of personal injury.