What action can a person injured by a product defect take?
Every Los Angeles resident makes mistakes from time to time. And yet, some mistakes are worse than others, such as when someone is injured because of the mistakes of someone else. Making matters even worse, sometimes these injuries could have been fully preventable. When a person or business failed to take proper steps to remedy the situation, serious and fatal mistakes could occur.
For example, this blog previously discussed the systemic failure of the recall system for tire defects. Unfortunately, tire defects are just one of many kinds of problems that can lead to defective cars, which have the potential to seriously injure or kill motorists on the road.
According to Consumer Reports, 7 people have been killed and more than 100 have been injured because of the recent defect linked to Takata airbags. These numbers could continue to increase, as tens of millions of vehicles have been recalled because of the defective airbags. The defect could cause the airbag to shoot out metal shards into the passenger cabin. These incidents have been truly horrifying, as metal shards have penetrated into the faces and necks of drivers.
These cases illustrate how important it is for injured consumers and their families to recognize their legal rights. The horrific injuries that can be suffered because of a product defect can support a legal claim based on products liability.
Through this legal claim, individuals can receive compensation to cover their medical expenses, lost wages, disfigurement and other damages they have suffered because of someone else’s careless mistake. Just as importantly, injured individuals can hold the companies responsible for these defects, which helps ensure that other people do not continue to be injured by the same defect if it is not properly addressed by the company.
Source: Consumer Reports, “Everything you need to know about the Takata air bag recall,” Nov. 3, 2015