Coloradans enjoy buying products that spark joy and make their lives easier.
And they rightfully expect those products to be safe and free from dangerous hazards.
Unfortunately, some parties place profits over consumer safety, leading to defective product liability.
As a result, seriously defective products injure, harm, and even kill many people yearly.
While no amount of money will make up for a loss of life or severe injury, defective product liability claim damages can provide some relief to victims and their families.
An experienced Colorado personal injury attorney can help you determine your next steps.
Defective Product Liability Claim Causes of Action
A defective product liability claim may stem from a defect or inherent dangerousness in the design, manufacture, or sale of a product that injures a consumer. Generally, a successful products liability claim must prove one of the following causes of action:
Strict Liability
In a product liability claim, a victim need not prove that the manufacturer was negligent. Instead, those who provide products to consumers are strictly liable for injuries caused by the product.
To recover damages, a victim injured by a defective product must demonstrate:
- That the defendant designed, manufactured, distributed, or sold a defective product;
- That the product contained the defect when it left the defendant’s possession;
- That the victim used the product in a reasonably foreseeable manner; and
- That defect harmed the victim.
Colorado bans a victim from recovering damages if they used the product for anything other than its proper or intended purpose.
Breach of Warranty
Under breach of warranty, a victim must show that there was a violation of the product’s written warranty. If the warranty no longer covers the defect, the victim must show that the item is still unfit for the purpose it was made for.
Who Is Responsible for Defective Products?
In Colorado product liability cases, one or more parties may be responsible for a harmful product defect. The product’s designer, manufacturer, marketer, retailer, and others can all be held liable.
Designers
A design defect occurs when the creator of the product designs a product:
- That is unreasonably dangerous; or
- That does not perform as safely as reasonably expected when a consumer uses it in its intended manner.
The product’s basic design is intrinsically dangerous or defective in this type of product liability. The victim must also prove that the design flaw makes the injuries more probable.
Manufacturers
Colorado requires manufacturers to determine how the average consumer will use and misuse their products.
If a person uses or misuses a product in a foreseeable way and that use or misuse hurts someone, the defendant will be held strictly liable.
Manufacturing defects can also occur even when manufacturers design the product to be safe, but its manufacture results in defects that cause harm.
While manufacturers aren’t expected to foresee every possibility, if a manufacturer knows that its product is dangerous and that the consumer must follow specific directions when using the product to be safe, the manufacturer must provide the consumer with detailed instructions.
If the manufacturer fails to warn the consumer about the danger or provide special instructions, the manufacturer may face a “failure to warn” product liability claim.
Marketers
Marketing defects can include inadequate warning labels or instructions that cause harm to the product’s user. Or it can be a complete lack of advertising that leads to a failure to warn consumers of known or potential risks.
Retailers
In some circumstances, a retailer or person that sells a defective product may have liability for consumer injuries. However, Colorado law places limitations on when an “innocent seller” can be held liable.
An attorney can examine the individual circumstances of your case and help you identify all potentially liable parties.
The Tenge Law Firm LLC Can Help you Hold the Right Parties Responsible
If a dangerous or defective product injured you or a loved one, contact the Tenge Law Firm LLC at 303-665-7676 for a free consultation.
The Tenge Law Firm can help you identify all responsible parties and fight to hold them accountable.
Our Colorado personal injury lawyers have helped countless accident victims recover the compensation they need to put their lives back together after a devastating accident.
We’ve recovered over $50 million on behalf of our clients over the last ten years and will work hard to win you the justice you deserve.