No matter how well you think you understand product liability, you may find yourself surprised by just how much it could apply to. It seems simple: being injured because of a defective product, such as a seatbelt that does not lock properly, could allow you to make a successful product liability claim. But in its simplicity, you may overlook something. It is important to remember that any product that causes injury, including things like laundry detergent pods, could be grounds for product liability.
A Pennsylvania woman recently went to do her laundry using Tide Pods, but according to the lawsuit, many of the pods were stuck together, and when she attempted to pull one away, it broke and gave her a chemical burn. The lawsuit alleges that faulty design directly contributed to this issue and thus caused the injury. The victim will allegedly require plastic surgery to fully repair the damages cause to her skin.
Detergent pods like these are fairly common, even in New York, and if you use Tide Pods, you too could find yourself injured if the product is truly defective. However, it is important to remember that filing a lawsuit does not guarantee that you will receive compensation. You cannot simply injure yourself using a certain product and then try to claim that the product is defective or dangerous. In order to file a successful claim, you will need to prove that a defect in the product was directly responsible for your injury, and that you would not have been injured if the product had been designed properly.
Think of any time you have been injured by something, and consider if that injury could have been avoided had the product been designed better or differently. If you can prove that this is the case, then you should consider meeting with an attorney to discuss the circumstances of your case. You could be entitled to compensation.
Source: The Pennsylvania Record, “Northampton woman says chemical burn caused by defective detergent pod,” Jim Boyle, Dec. 23, 2014