When a product fails, the core question is not just what happened, but why it happened, which points directly to the different types of product liability claims. A successful case depends on accurately identifying whether the product's failure originated in its initial concept, creation, or communication to you, the consumer.
A product liability attorney evaluates the evidence to pinpoint the specific failure and build a compelling argument on your behalf.
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Key Takeaways for Types of Product Liability Claims
- A design defect means that the entire product line is inherently unsafe, even if it's manufactured perfectly.
- A manufacturing defect occurs when a specific item is flawed due to an error during its production or assembly.
- Marketing defects, also known as failure to warn, happen when a product lacks adequate instructions or warnings about non-obvious dangers.
- Identifying the correct type of defect is a foundational step in pursuing any product liability action.
- A product liability lawyer handles the burden of proof for you, building a claim and handling insurance communications on your behalf.
Exploring Design Defect Claims
A design defect represents a fundamental flaw in the product's very blueprint, meaning every single unit produced according to that design contains the same potential for harm. Even with flawless manufacturing and clear warnings, the product remains unreasonably dangerous for its intended use.
A product liability lawsuit explained through the lens of a design defect focuses on decisions made long before the item reached the assembly line.
An attorney investigates several key areas to build a design defect case:
- Initial Schematics: They scrutinize the original blueprints and design documents for evidence of foreseeable risks.
- Material Selection: They evaluate whether the materials chosen were appropriate for the product's intended and foreseeable uses.
- Safety Testing Protocols: They review the company's internal testing records to determine if safety checks were adequate or if known risks were ignored.
The central argument in these cases is that the manufacturer could have chosen a safer, economically feasible, and practical alternative design that would have prevented or lessened the risk of injury.
Proving this requires a detailed analysis of the product and its intended function. The law examines whether the danger posed by the design outweighs its utility. For instance, a power tool with a missing or poorly designed safety guard presents an obvious design flaw.
Similarly, an SUV with a high center of gravity that makes it prone to rolling over during a normal turn on Loop 1604 points to a potential defect in its fundamental architecture.
What Proves a Flawed Design in Texas?
To establish a design defect claim, you typically must demonstrate that a safer alternative design existed at the time of manufacturing. This alternative must have been capable of preventing or significantly reducing the risk of your injury without substantially impairing the product's usefulness.
The alternative design must also have been economically and technologically feasible for the company to implement.
This is a complex standard. Your legal counsel may collaborate with engineers to analyze the product's mechanics and propose a viable, safer design. The analysis involves showing how this alternate design would have performed and how its absence directly contributed to the incident.
The Role of Consumer Expectation
In Texas, courts may consider what an ordinary consumer would expect as part of the design defect analysis. The law may ask whether the product failed to perform as safely as a regular consumer would expect when using it in a reasonable manner.
If a household ladder collapses under a weight far below its stated capacity, it has clearly failed to meet consumer expectations. The product's failure in this context highlights a fundamental issue with its design specifications.
A key question becomes: What would a reasonable person expect? A toy sold for a toddler that contains small, detachable parts presents a choking hazard, which a reasonable parent wouldn't expect from a product designed for that age group.
These cases argue that the manufacturer is in the best position to foresee and prevent such dangers from the very beginning, and holding a manufacturer accountable is possible when they fail to do so.
An Error in the Process
Unlike design defects that impact an entire product line, a manufacturing defect is a one-off error. It occurs when a safe product design becomes dangerous because of a mistake during the production or assembly process.
The product's blueprint is sound, but the specific item you received deviated from that intended design, making it unsafe. A flaw that occurs during manufacturing can turn an otherwise safe item into a serious hazard.
Imagine a production line where thousands of identical products are made. One item might have a cracked component, a missing screw, or contaminated materials due to a momentary lapse in quality control.
That single, flawed product might then be shipped and sold to a consumer at a shop in the Pearl District, leading to an unexpected injury. These types of product liability claims focus on demonstrating how your specific item differed from all the others manufactured correctly.
The challenge in these cases is not to prove a safer design was possible, but to show the product you used was not made as the manufacturer intended. The company's own quality standards and design specifications often become the benchmark against which the defective product is measured.
Pinpointing the Production Error
An investigation into a manufacturing defect examines the entire production chain. The process starts from the sourcing of raw materials to the final assembly and packaging. An attorney helps uncover where the deviation occurred.
Did a machine on the assembly line malfunction? Was a worker improperly trained? Did the company use a batch of substandard materials that compromised the product's integrity?
For example, a batch of packaged food may become contaminated with a harmful substance during processing at the plant. Or a car's airbag system might be installed incorrectly in one vehicle, causing it to fail during a collision on I-10.
These errors aren't part of the design; they're failures in execution.
Proving the Defect Caused the Harm
After identifying the manufacturing flaw, the next step is connecting that specific error to your injury. This connection must be clear and direct. If a bicycle frame cracked because of an impurity in the metal alloy from the factory, you must show that the crack caused you to lose control and crash.
Your legal team uses evidence to build this connection, including:
- Product Examination: An analysis of the product itself can often reveal the physical evidence of the manufacturing flaw.
- Company Records: Internal documents may show a history of quality control issues or specific problems on the date your product was manufactured.
- Similar Incidents: Evidence of other identical products from the same batch failing in the same way can strengthen your case.
- Witness Testimony: Statements from anyone who saw the product fail can provide crucial context.
How Marketing Defects Lead to Injury
The third type of product liability claim involves marketing defects, commonly referred to as failure to warn. These claims arise when a product, even if perfectly designed and manufactured, carries non-obvious risks that the company fails to communicate to the user.
The defect lies not in the product itself, but in the information—or lack thereof—that comes with it.
Manufacturers and sellers have a responsibility to provide adequate warnings and instructions for a product's safe use. When a product has inherent dangers that are not apparent to the average user, the company must provide a clear warning.
The absence of such a warning can form the basis for a product liability lawsuit, often attributed to a marketing defect. This applies to a vast range of goods, from industrial machinery to prescription drugs to common household cleaners bought in an Alamo Heights store.
A warning must be prominent and easy to comprehend. It must also specify the nature of the risk and the potential severity of the harm that may result. A vague or hidden warning may be legally inadequate.
For example, a prescription medication that can cause a severe reaction when taken with a common food needs a very explicit warning to the prescribing doctor or health care provider to that effect.
What Constitutes an Adequate Warning?
The law evaluates several factors to determine if a warning is legally adequate. Simply stating "Use with caution" is often not enough.
A proper warning has several key attributes:
- Placement: The warning must be conspicuous and positioned where a user is likely to see and read it before using the product.
- Clarity: The language must be clear and understandable to the average consumer for whom the product is intended, avoiding overly technical jargon.
- Content: It must clearly communicate the nature of the hazard, its severity, and the potential consequences of not following the instructions.
An adequate warning also instructs the user on how to avoid the danger. Consider a chemical product that releases toxic fumes; the warning should advise users to use it only in a well-ventilated area and with appropriate protective gear.
The question is whether a reasonable manufacturer would have provided a more direct or comprehensive warning.
When a Warning Is Not Required
Companies aren't required to warn against every conceivable misuse of a product, nor are they required to warn of dangers that are open and obvious. A sharp knife, for example, has an obvious danger that doesn't require a specific warning label stating it can cut you.
However, many dangers aren't obvious. An electric blanket may pose a risk of causing burns if left on for too long while a person sleeps, a danger that isn't immediately apparent—the core of a failure to warn claim centers on these latent dangers.
A legal team can help assess whether the risk associated with your injury was obvious or one that required a specific warning from the manufacturer. In complex product liability cases, having experienced representation is critical—a legal team is non-negotiable when you're facing a manufacturer and its insurance carriers. You bought the product to use, not to analyze for hidden dangers.
FAQ for Types of Product Liability Claims
What Is the Deadline for Filing a Product Liability Claim in Texas?
In Texas, you generally have two years from the date you were injured to file a product liability lawsuit. This deadline, known as the statute of limitations, is strict; if you miss it, your chance at compensation will likely disappear.
There is also a statute of repose, which may bar a claim if it's brought more than 15 years after the product was sold by the defendant, regardless of when you were injured.
Who Can Be Held Liable for a Defective Product?
Liability can extend to multiple parties in the chain of distribution. This includes the product designer, the manufacturer of the product or its component parts, and, in some situations, the wholesaler or distributor, and the final retailer who sold the product.
An attorney helps identify every party that may bear some responsibility for your injuries and whether Texas law allows a claim against each one.
What Kind of Evidence Is Important in a Defective Product Case?
The most critical piece of evidence is the product itself, so preserve the defective item in its post-accident condition. Other key evidence includes photos and videos of the product and your injuries, medical records, receipts or proof of purchase, and any packaging or instructions that came with the product.
Does It Matter if I Don't Have the Receipt Anymore?
While a receipt is helpful, its absence doesn't typically prevent you from pursuing a claim. Your attorney can use other evidence, such as credit card statements, witness testimony, or product serial numbers, to establish when and where you acquired the item.
Can I File a Lawsuit if I Used the Product Incorrectly?
Product misuse can affect a claim, but it doesn't automatically prevent you from recovering damages. The key question is whether your misuse was foreseeable to the manufacturer.
If the company could have reasonably anticipated the type of misuse, it may still have had a duty to design the product to be safer or to provide a warning against that specific action.
Ready for the Next Step?
Determining the type of your product liability claim is the first step toward seeking justice. The attorneys at Cowen | Rodriguez | Peacock have the experience to investigate product failures and build a strong case based on the evidence.
You don't have to confront a large corporation on your own. If you're ready to take the next step, fill out our online form to learn how we can assist you.