Product Liability Attorney | A New York Win for Consumer Safety

A New York Win for Consumer Safety

A suit against the company that sells Red Devil Lye, a product that is used to clean out stopped up drains, recently had a suit against them reinstated in court. It was thrown out by two lower courts before the highest court in New York reinstated it. The suit is being brought by a restaurant owner and alleges that the product has a defective design that makes it inherently dangerous to users. As is the case with many such claims, the plaintiff was seriously injured while using the product.

The Product

Red Devil Lye is pure sodium hydroxide. This compound is caustic and the drain cleaner product comes with warnings that it has to be handled while wearing gloves and eye protection. It also carries warnings that it could splash back up the drain if used improperly. The company got the case dismissed twice by pointing this out and said that the injuries suffered by the plaintiff would have been averted if he'd read the directions. The owner, a restaurant worker, lost his vision in one eye when the product splashed back up a drain he was cleaning out.

The suit, however, says that the warning isn't enough. Many product liability claims allege that someone is given inadequate warnings about a product and that they're injured as a result. There are, however, precedents for claims being successfully pressed because a product was inherently dangerous, even when used as instructed, and because the parties suing believe that the product shouldn’t even be on the market.

The company being sued, Reckitt & Coleman, Inc. and Reckitt Benckiser Inc., own the product and are responsible for its package and its labeling, according to reports.

Inherently Dangerous

There have been other products that have been taken off of the market because they were dangerous when used as directed. Lawn darts are a famous example. There are certain risks that some products pose that are found to be acceptable. Firearms, for example, pose a risk of death by gunshot wound. In cases such as the Red Devil claim, however, the plaintiff is claiming that the product is far too dangerous for the consumer market and trying to get compensation for the pain and suffering they endured.

Product liability law firms handle these types of claims. Part of the function of product liability law is to allow everyday people to take on large corporations when their products prove dangerous when used as directed.