TIME TO BRING A PRODUCT LIABILITY CLAIM IN FLORIDA

Most claims for product liability must generally be brought within 4 years from the date the injury occurred or was discovered. Florida has 2 time limits which may apply - Statute of Limitations and Statute of Repose. Under a Statute of Limitations, the law limits how long you could bring a claim. For wrongful death claims in Florida, the time is usually 2 years. For personal injury, it is usually 4 years. An action for products liability must typically be filed within the period running from the date that the facts giving rise to the cause of action were discovered, or should have been discovered with the exercise of due diligence.

Florida also has a Statute of Repose for product liability claims. Under no circumstances may a claimant commence an action for products liability, including a wrongful death action or any other claim arising from personal injury or property damage caused by a product, to recover for harm allegedly caused by a product with an expected useful life of 10 years or less, if the harm was caused by exposure to or use of the product more than 12 years after delivery of the product to its first purchaser or lessee who was not engaged in the business of selling or leasing the product or of using the product as a component in the manufacture of another product.

Florida Statutes also provide that all products, except those below, are conclusively presumed to have an expected useful life of 10 years or less.
1. Aircraft used in commercial or contract carrying of passengers or freight, vessels of more than 100 gross tons, railroad equipment used in commercial or contract carrying of passengers or freight, and improvements to real property, including elevators and escalators, are not subject to the statute of repose provided within this subsection.
2. Any product not listed in subparagraph 1., which the manufacturer specifically warranted, through express representation or labeling, as having an expected useful life exceeding 10 years, has an expected useful life commensurate with the time period indicated by the warranty or label. Under such circumstances, no action for products liability may be brought after the expected useful life of the product, or more than 12 years after delivery of the product to its first purchaser or lessee who was not engaged in the business of selling or leasing the product or of using the product as a component in the manufacture of another product, whichever is later.
3. With regard to those products listed in subparagraph 1., except for escalators, elevators, and improvements to real property, no action for products liability may be brought more than 20 years after delivery of the product to its first purchaser or lessor who was not engaged in the business of selling or leasing the product or of using the product as a component in the manufacture of another product. However, if the manufacturer specifically warranted, through express representation or labeling, that the product has an expected useful life exceeding 20 years, the repose period shall be the time period warranted in representations or label.
 

Florida law also provides some exceptions to the Statute of Repose. For example, the repose period provided above may not apply if the claimant was exposed to or used the product within the repose period, but an injury caused by such exposure or use did not manifest itself until after expiration of the repose period.
 

Fraudulent Concealment

To protect consumers, Florida law also provides that the repose period may be tolled for any period during which the manufacturer through its officers, directors, partners, or managing agents had actual knowledge that the product was defective in the manner alleged by the claimant and took affirmative steps to conceal the defect. Any claim of concealment under this section shall be made with specificity and must be based upon substantial factual and legal support.