Miami Product Liability Lawyer

Our Florida product liability lawyers handle personal injury and wrongful death claims caused by defective or bad products, medical devices, and medications. If you or a loved one was injured by a consumer product, medical device, or medication, call one of our Miami product liability attorneys today for a free consultation at 800-337-7755.

It’s always a FREE consultation! We are also often open late, and on weekends and holidays, to speak with you about your potential product liability injury case. Complete the form below or call a product injury attorney at the Law Offices of Jason Turchin now at 800-337-7755 to discuss your injury claim.

Miami Product Liability Attorneys

Our product liability attorneys represent those injured or killed by consumer products, medical devices, and medication.

Under Florida law, a “Products liability action” means a civil action based upon a theory of strict liability, negligence, breach of warranty, nuisance, or similar theories for damages caused by the manufacture, construction, design, formulation, installation, preparation, or assembly of a product. Product liability also includes an action alleging that injuries received by a claimant in an accident were greater than the injuries the claimant would have received but for a defective product.

We handle many types of product liability claims, including those involving medications, medical devices, cars that cause increased injury or death than the accident should have caused, and consumer products, like baby products, pressure cookers, ladders, rechargeable hand warmers, heated blankets, wristbands that cut into the skin, and other products which cause injury or death to the user or those in the area around the product.

Product Liability Claims We Can Handle

Pressure Cooker Explosions

Our product liability lawyers have handled many cases for injuries caused by defective pressure cookers, including the Power Pressure Cooker XL made by Tristar Products, Instant Pot, Crock-Pot, Gourmia, Ninja, and Presto. Common complaints from victims are that the pressure cooker was still pressurized when they opened the lid, causing scalding hot liquid to fly out and burn them. The cooker should have a safety lock preventing these types of incidents from occurring. Some victims found that the cooker appeared to be done and steam stopped coming out of the valve, when in fact it was pressurized and waiting to explode.

Rechargeable Hand Warmers and Lithium-Ion Batteries

Rechargeable devices that rely on lithium-ion batteries can pose a severe fire and burn hazard. We can investigate claims involving OCOOPA rechargeable hand warmers, e-bike batteries, vape pens, hoverboards, and power banks that overheat, explode, or enter thermal runaway, causing severe chemical and thermal burns or property damage.

Jeep and Defective Airbag Explosions

Our office has handled claims for several victims who alleged that their vehicle’s airbags exploded without an accident, including Jeep models and vehicles equipped with recalled Takata airbags. If you sustained burns, fractures, shrapnel wounds, or any other injury caused by an unexpected or violent airbag deployment, you could be entitled to compensation for your injuries.

Defective Automobiles and Crashworthiness

If you were severely injured or a loved one was killed in an automobile accident, we can investigate to determine whether any defect in the design or manufacture of the vehicle caused or contributed to the victim’s injuries. Some vehicles are not sufficiently crashworthy and can do more harm than good. Claims may involve ignition switches shutting off during driving, airbags shooting shrapnel, seatbacks collapsing during a crash, parts of the steering wheel detaching upon impact, seat belt failure, tire blowouts, and roof crushes.

Consumer and Household Products

If you or a child was injured by a consumer product, you may have a claim for product liability. We’ve handled claims from injuries caused by defective hair dryers, faulty phone cases, electric scooters, Segway devices, hair dye chemical burns, unstable furniture (like collapsing chairs), broken step stools, defective space heaters, and many other household appliances and electronics.

Defective Medical Devices and Implants

Patients trust medical devices to improve their health, but defective manufacturing can lead to catastrophic complications. We can investigate claims involving:

• Hernia Mesh: Several types of hernia mesh have been found to cause additional injury due to possible defects. The mesh could migrate, shrink, or cause bowel obstruction, leading to painful revision surgeries.
• Breast Implants: The FDA investigates possible links between certain textured breast implants and anaplastic large-cell lymphoma (ALCL). Symptoms may include fever, backache, swelling of lymph nodes, and severe fatigue.

Child and Infant Products

Over the years, we’ve handled many product liability claims on behalf of families whose child was injured as a result of a defective product. If your child was injured because of an issue with a toy, collapsing stroller, defective car seat, tipping dresser, inclined sleeper, or playground equipment, you may have a strong product liability claim.

Florida’s Product Liability Laws

There are several claims that could be made against a company if you are injured by a defective product. Most claims for product liability are based in strict liability, and may include claims for breach of warranty, negligence, and other consumer protection statutes. Common legal theories include:

Defective Design of a Product

A claim based on defective design alleges that the engineering or design of the product itself made it inherently dangerous. Under the Restatement (Third) of Torts, a product is defective in design “when the foreseeable risks of harm posed by the product could have been reduced or avoided by the adoption of a reasonable alternative design,” and its omission “renders the product not reasonably safe.”

Defective Manufacture of a Product

A defective manufacture claim is based on the allegation that the product was defective because of an error or flaw when it was being assembled or built. An example is the Takata airbag recall, where it was alleged that the chemical compound was exposed to moisture during manufacturing, changing its composition and making the explosive inflator far more volatile.

Failure to Warn or Marketing Defects

Under Florida law, a defendant may be liable if it knowingly placed a dangerous product on the market, the dangerous condition of which is unnoticeable to the average consumer, and failed to properly warn of the hazard or provide adequate instructions for safe use.

Comparing Fault of Parties

Juries may be permitted to apportion fault between multiple defendants in a Florida product liability claim. Under Florida law, in a products liability action alleging that injuries received by a claimant in an accident were enhanced by a defective product, the trier of fact (the judge or jury) may sometimes consider the fault of all persons who contributed to the accident when apportioning liability. The jury may be appropriately instructed by the trial judge on how to apportion fault among the responsible manufacturers, distributors, or retailers.

Time To Bring a Product Liability Claim in Florida

Most claims for product liability must generally be brought within the applicable statute of limitations, which in Florida is typically two (2) years from the date the injury occurred or was discovered for negligence and wrongful death claims. An action for products liability may need to 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, according to the law, may a claimant commence an action for products liability (including wrongful death or personal injury) if the harm was caused by a product with an expected useful life of 10 years or less, and the injury occurred more than 12 years after delivery of the product to its first purchaser or lessee.

Florida Statutes provide that all products, except those specifically listed, are conclusively presumed to have an expected useful life of 10 years or less. Exceptions include commercial aircraft, vessels over 100 gross tons, railroad equipment, and improvements to real property (like elevators and escalators). Furthermore, if a manufacturer specifically warrants a product as having an expected useful life exceeding 10 or 20 years, the repose period may be extended to match the warranted timeframe.

Fraudulent Concealment

To protect consumers, Florida law also provides that the repose period may be tolled (paused) for any period during which the manufacturer, through its officers or managing agents, had actual knowledge that the product was defective and took affirmative steps to conceal the defect from the public.

What Can You Recover in a Product Liability Claim?

The types of compensation you can recover depend entirely on your specific damages and injuries. Typically, a victim of a defective product may be entitled to recover financial compensation for:

• Pain and suffering (past and future)
• Past medical expenses (ER visits, surgeries, burn treatments)
• Future medical care and rehabilitation
• Lost wages from missed time at work
• Loss of future earning capacity
• Out-of-pocket expenses
• Permanent disfigurement or scarring

There may be other damages the victim may also be entitled to recover, depending on the facts of the claim.

If you need a Miami Product Liability Attorney, call the Law Offices of Jason Turchin today at 800-337-7755 for a free consultation. We are open late and on call to speak with you about your potential product liability case.