How To Report a Defective Product

You expect the things you buy to be safe for use. A product should do what it claims—not have unexpected safety hazards. Unfortunately, manufacturers often cut corners to save money, which can put you at risk of serious injury. If you come across a dangerous product, reporting it can help protect others from personal injury.

Injury victims can file a product liability lawsuit for compensation after a defective product injury. For information about reporting defective products, talk to a product liability lawyer.

Steps To Take When You Discover a Defective Product

According to the National Safety Council, more than 12 million people went to emergency room care for consumer product injuries. Adults, children, and seniors use products while assuming they are safe for regular use. However, product defects put you at risk of serious injury, property damage, and fatal accidents.

Reporting a defective product can alert others to the hidden dangers of common products. Unfortunately, reporting and recalls can take a lot of time. Millions of products are already in regular use before enough injury reports come in to make others aware of the risk.

There were more than 60 million vehicles subject to recall for airbag defects. The defective airbags were not obvious when people bought their cars. It was only after 10 to 15 years that drivers found out they were driving a vehicle with defective airbags.

Identifying a Defective Product

Under product liability laws, manufacturers, distributors, and retailers are all liable for putting defective products out on the market. There are three main types of product defects:

• Design defects
• Manufacturing defects
• Failure to warn defects

Design defects involve problems with the product’s design. Poor designs can make a product inherently dangerous. Even with the best materials and manufacturing standards, a bad design makes for a dangerous product. For example, metal-on-metal hip joint implants can shed metal shards into the body because of a bad design.

A manufacturing defect involves a problem with the way the business produces the product. A safe design can become unsafe if the manufacturer uses inferior materials or does not have proper quality control. For example, making pharmaceuticals in a factory without proper safety protocols can produce contaminated drugs.

Products should be safe for their intended use. Manufacturers must warn you if there are unknown dangers when using the product as intended. Drug laws require companies to put warning labels on medication when there are risks of side effects, adverse events, and contraindications.

After identifying a defective product, you can report it to federal consumer protection agencies. You can also report defective products to your state attorney general and the manufacturers. Contact a product defect attorney to find out about your legal rights after a defective product injury.

Reporting to Consumer Protection Agencies

Reporting defective products can help others avoid unnecessary injury from unsafe products. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) handles consumer complaints about dangerous products. If a product is unsafe, the CPSC can issue a product recall to get the dangerous products out of circulation.

Give as much information as you can when making a defective product report. This includes:

• What happened
• When and where the accident happened
• The type of product
• How you were using the product
• Any injuries

For dangerous drugs and medical devices, you can report drug defects and injuries to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). You can also tell your doctor about drug side effects. Your doctor can file an adverse drug event report for you.

Contacting the Manufacturer

Business owners have a legal duty to report any unsafe products that could create a substantial risk of injury to consumers. You can also report unsafe products to the manufacturer. However, you may want to work with your lawyer before contacting the manufacturer. If you deal with the business directly, they may try to get you to take a small settlement to sign away your legal rights.

If you are unhappy with a product but it is not dangerous, you might get a refund or replacement. State consumer protection laws also offer some protections against scams and defective products. If the manufacturer will not help, your credit card company can step in and help you get a refund.

Legal Implications of Defective Products

Manufacturers, vendors, and distributors share liability for defective product injuries. If a defective product causes injury, you can file a product liability claim for damages. Compensation in a product liability claim includes:

• Medical bills
• Lost income
• Pain and suffering
• Property damage

A product liability lawyer can review your case and explain your legal options. Your lawyer can file a personal injury claim in court to help you get compensation. They can also negotiate with the product manufacturer for a settlement offer. For legal advice about defective product injuries, contact a local product liability attorney.