Three Types of Product Defects

Under Florida law, a product can be defective in three main ways:

1. Design defect: The problem is built into the design, so every unit made that way carries the same danger. A design is defective if the product does not perform as safely as an ordinary consumer would expect when used as intended or in a way the manufacturer could reasonably foresee, or if the risk of danger in the design outweighs its benefits.
2. Manufacturing defect: Something went wrong when your particular product was made. It differs from its intended design and does not perform as safely as the intended design would have.
3. Failure to warn: The product came without reasonable instructions or warnings that could have reduced or avoided a foreseeable risk of harm, and the lack of them made the product unreasonably dangerous.

A consultation with us is free, and there is no obligation. If we take your case, you owe no fee and no costs unless we recover money for you.

Who Can Be Held Responsible

Florida recognizes strict liability for defective products. In a strict liability claim, you generally must show that the company made, distributed, or sold the product; that the product was defective and unreasonably dangerous; that it reached the user without substantial change in that condition; and that the defect caused your injury. You do not have to prove the company was careless.

Depending on the case, strict liability can reach every business in the chain of distribution, including:

• The designer and manufacturer
• Importers and distributors
• Retail stores and other sellers

Claims for negligence and breach of warranty may also apply, for example when a company failed to use reasonable care in designing, making, or warning about a product. Strict liability also protects foreseeable bystanders (people near the product when it failed), not only the person who bought or used it.

Common Defective Products

• Vehicles and vehicle parts, including airbags, seat belts, tires, and brakes
• E-bike, e-scooter, and hoverboard batteries that overheat or catch fire
• Household appliances and electronics
• Power tools, lawn equipment, and industrial machinery
• Medical devices and implants
• Children's products, such as car seats, cribs, and toys
• Furniture and TVs that tip over

Claims involving some medical devices can be limited by federal law, so these cases need careful review early.

What to Do If a Product Injured You

1. Get medical care: See a doctor right away and explain how you were hurt. Medical records connect your injuries to the product.
2. Keep the product: Don't repair it, throw it away, or send it back to the manufacturer or store, even if someone offers a refund or replacement. The product itself is key evidence. If it's a battery that overheated, smoked, or burned, don't charge or use it, and keep it away from anything that can catch fire.
3. Save everything that came with it: Keep the box, manual, warning labels, receipt, and any pieces that broke off.
4. Take photos: Photograph the product, the place where you were hurt, and your injuries.
5. Protect the vehicle: If a vehicle defect may be involved, ask your insurer and the tow yard not to sell, repair, or scrap the vehicle until it can be inspected.
6. Check for recalls: Search by VIN at NHTSA.gov/recalls for vehicles, and look up car seats, tires, and other vehicle equipment there too. Check CPSC.gov for household and children's products, and FDA.gov for medical devices.
7. Call a lawyer before giving statements: Don't give a statement to the manufacturer, the seller, or their insurers until you get advice. A lawyer can arrange an inspection that preserves the evidence.

Florida Product Liability Laws You Should Know

Deadline to file a lawsuit

Florida generally allows four years to sue for an injury caused by the design, manufacture, distribution, or sale of a product. For a product liability claim, that time generally runs from when you discovered, or should have discovered, the facts behind the claim. But related claims can have shorter deadlines. Ordinary negligence claims for injuries that happened after March 24, 2023 generally have two years, and wrongful death claims generally have two years. Because the deadline can depend on the type of claim, we plan around the shortest one that might apply.

The 12-year outside limit

Florida also sets an outer limit, called a statute of repose. For most products, no claim can be brought if the harm came from use of or exposure to the product more than 12 years after it was delivered to its first buyer (not counting businesses that sell or lease it or use it to make other products). There are exceptions, including when the manufacturer warranted a longer useful life, when an injury from use within the 12 years did not show up until later, and for time a manufacturer spent hiding a defect it knew about. Different limits apply to aircraft and railroad equipment used to carry passengers or freight commercially, vessels over 100 gross tons, and improvements to real property such as elevators and escalators.

Shared fault

Florida's comparative fault rule applies to product cases. If you are partly at fault, your recovery is reduced by your share of the blame, and if you are found more than 50% at fault, you generally cannot recover anything. In a strict liability claim, simply failing to notice the defect is not a defense. And if a company claims you misused the product, a design can still be defective if it is unsafe when used in a way the manufacturer could reasonably foresee.

Safety standards and recalls

If the part of a product that caused the harm met government safety standards that were required for its sale and meant to prevent that kind of harm, Florida law presumes the product was not defective. If it did not meet those standards, the law presumes it was defective. Either presumption can be overcome with other evidence. A product does not have to be recalled for you to have a claim.

What Compensation Can You Recover?

Every case is different, but compensation in a product liability claim can include:

• Past and future medical expenses
• Lost wages and lost earning capacity
• Pain and suffering
• Mental anguish and emotional distress
• Loss of enjoyment of life
• Scarring and disfigurement
• Damage to other property, such as a home damaged by a fire

If a family member was killed, the family may have a wrongful death claim. In some cases, when clear and convincing evidence shows intentional misconduct or gross negligence, Florida law allows punitive damages, which punish the wrongdoer and deter others. Strict rules and limits apply.

How We Build Your Product Liability Case

1. Free consultation: Tell us what happened and how you were hurt. We'll tell you in plain terms whether you have a claim and what comes next.
2. Secure the evidence: We take steps to secure the product, its packaging, and its records, and we document who handles it.
3. Expert analysis: When needed, we work with engineers and other experts who inspect and test the product using methods that preserve the evidence.
4. Research: We look into recalls, government complaint records, and earlier incidents involving the same product.
5. Identify every responsible company: We trace the product through its designer, manufacturer, distributors, and sellers, and find the insurance that may apply.
6. Negotiation, and trial if needed: We present your claim and negotiate for a fair settlement. If the companies won't make a fair offer, we file suit and get your case ready for trial.