In 2021, around
11.7 million individuals
sought medical attention in emergency departments due to injuries caused by consumer products, according to the National Safety Council. Surprisingly, most of these injuries were related to common everyday items that are typically considered safe.
Unfortunately, the most vulnerable groups, such as older adults and young children, are frequently affected by these injuries. Children between the ages of 0 and 4 have one of the highest rates of injury.
If you have been injured by a dangerous or defective product, you may be able to file a lawsuit against the manufacturer, distributor, or retailer of the product. Through a product liability claim, you can recover financial compensation for all of your losses, including property damage, medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and more. Our Hawai‘i personal injury attorneys will fight to get you maximum compensation for your losses.
Based in Honolulu, Miyashita & O’Steen represents individuals and families throughout Hawai‘i who have been hurt in all types of accidents. We offer free initial consultations and never charge a fee unless we recover money for you. To learn more or to schedule an appointment with a Honolulu product liability lawyer, contact our law firm today.
What Is a Product Liability Lawsuit?
When you purchase an item, you probably expect that it will be safe for you to use. Unfortunately, products that go on the market in the United States aren’t always safe for consumers. This can often put people at risk when using these dangerous or defective products.
When someone is injured by a dangerous product, they can file a lawsuit against its manufacturer, distributor, and/or retailer for their injuries. This is a special type of personal injury claim known as a product liability lawsuit.
In Hawai‘i, you can file a product liability lawsuit based on three theories:
- Defective design: in a design defect claim, the injured victim (plaintiff) claims that there is something inherently flawed or dangerous about the design of the product itself.
- Manufacturing defects: the product’s design might be fine, but some type of manufacturing error caused the product to be defective.
- Failure to warn: the manufacturer did not warn consumers of the dangers associated with using the product.
One of the most common examples of a dangerous product is lithium-ion batteries. These batteries can be found in many common household items, including toothbrushes, smartphones, scooters, e-bikes, and cars. Yet, according to the U.S. Fire Administration, lithium-ion batteries have the
If someone is hurt by a lithium-ion battery fire, they could potentially pursue a claim on any or all of the three theories listed above. If the product was designed in such a way that no use of the battery would be safe, then that is a design defect case. If the design of the battery was fine, but there was a flaw in the manufacturing process, that would be a manufacturing defect case. Finally, if the manufacturer did not warn about potential dangers associated with the battery (such as charging it for too long), then it could be held liable under a failure to warn theory.
Hawai‘i allows plaintiffs to sue manufacturers (defendants) for negligence and/or strict liability. In a negligence case, the plaintiff has to prove that the defendant was careless in some way. With strict liability, if a product is more dangerous than it should be or if it contains inadequate warnings, the manufacturer can be held liable for any injuries that result (without any need for the plaintiff to prove negligence).
Product liability claims can be brought for almost any type of product – contaminated food, electronics, medications, medical devices, motor vehicles, and household supplies, etc. If the product was dangerous or defective in some way when it left the manufacturer’s possession and caused harm when used in a reasonably foreseeable way, then the manufacturer, distributor, and the retailer, can be held liable for the harm that it caused.
Our law firm is adept at navigating the often challenging process of determining fault in a product liability case and holding defendants liable. We won’t back down from a fight and will work hard to help you get the money that you deserve for your injuries.
