Archives

If you have been injured due to a faulty or dangerous product, here is a little advice about how to get a claim started – i.e. what sorts of things you need that can help us lawyers assess a claim and start a claim.

Photos

Photos of the product are always extremely useful for us to have a look at – especially if they show the dangerous part that caused you an injury. It can also help us to better understand the mechanics of the product because not everyone knows what damp proofing membranes look like.

Receipts and Documentation / Packaging

All this is useful to allow us to assess what warnings or instructions for use come with the product. You would think that if you were using the product as it is intended to be used and you end up injured, something isn’t quite right. The receipt is also useful for proof of purchase too, and this is normally required by the other side when they start their investigations.
Read More

Have you ever bought something that wasn’t exactly up to standard? The common answer to that is most probably yes – but has the product caused injury or loss?

The consumer protection act is the law that protects consumers from the risk of illness or injury due to faulty products. This could be from a food source to any household item bought. The act protects the consumer from the products which do not meet a reasonable level of safety.

Of course, 100% level of safety cannot always be guaranteed, but has to be as safe as reasonably possible.

Some cases involving product liability can include:
Read More

If you buy a product in England / Wales, you should be covered by the Supply of Goods and Services Act that legislates that all products provided to a person must be as described, of an expected quality, fit for purpose, and should not cause you harm.

So, the huge question is – what happens if you are injured as a result of a poor product? If a product injures you due to it being defective or having some form of underlying issue, you may be covered under the act. You must prove though that the product is defective. If you are injured because a banana pops out of its skin whilst you’re peeling it, and unfortunately it hits you in the face, I’d say that’s not really a defect but an unfortunate turn of events…

However, if you buy a new toaster, you put your bread in as instructed, and it blows up, I’d say there was a potential issue. Or perhaps if you bought a new chair, sat down on it for the first time and it collapsed, there could be an underlying defect or it may not have been manufactured correctly.
Read More

I was thinking the other day about product liability claims in general as we have a lot of claims for personal injury caused by products.

The official definition to say whether you have a claim for product liability is when damage, loss, and/or injuries are suffered as a result of a manufacturing or design fault or failure to inform of a defect in a product. This means that the person responsible for the retail or production of the item in question both have the responsibility of informing the consumer of any instructions on how to use the product safely and avoid danger, any restrictions there may be with regards to age, weight or height etc. to prevent this from happening. And if any defects arise, they must inform all who have purchased the products that could cause fault to try and stop anyone from coming to harm.
Read More