Product Liability Cases

Because they are the causes of so many deaths, automobiles are oftentimes good illustrations of how product liability law works. Automobiles are, by their nature, dangerous products. Even though they are dangerous, is been established many times that consumers do have a right to expect a certain degree of safety from the manufacturers of these products. There has been more than one product liability claim that has successfully argued that the auto manufacturers did not uphold their duty to provide a safe, sensible product to their customers.

For example, in February of 2011, it was ruled that lawsuits against auto manufacturers who marketed vehicle designs that featured lap only seatbelts in some of the passenger positions could be sued for wrongful deaths. What was interesting about this case is that a lap only seatbelt technically meets the federal minimum requirements for automobile safety. A 2002 death, however, resulted in a wrongful death lawsuit that brought this issue to light.

There have been other cases where automobile manufacturers have been held liable for deaths caused by their products. Among the most famous were the cases involving the Ford Pinto, a vehicle that had the potential to suffer lethal gas tank explosions when rear-ended. When manufacturers fail to provide products that offer a reasonable degree of safety to the people using them, they are sometimes held liable by means of lawsuits that enable the victims of that negligence to receive financial compensation for their injuries, their pain and suffering and their loss of property.

Another good reason that these cases illustrate how product liability law works is the fact that, if you use an automobile in an unsafe manner, the manufacturer is not responsible for any injuries you sustain. There are excepted norms and establish laws that regard the safe operation of a motor vehicle. Manufacturers also provide warnings not to engage in certain types of behavior behind the wheel. Between the warnings, the laws in the conventions, it's easy to establish whether or not a driver was acting sensibly when they got behind the wheel and, if they weren't, it's not really the auto manufacturer’s fault.

Product liability law exists to protect the consumer, but it is written in such a way that also holds the consumer responsible for any unsafe actions they take. When the product itself proves unsafe, however, manufacturers may well find themselves paying out a jury award to the people who are injured by their products.

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