Injured by a Defective Holiday Gift? What Now?

The holidays are a fun time to spend with family and friends, and of course, the giving and receiving of gifts is always a highlight. However, while receiving gifts is great, things don’t always work out as planned. In fact, defective gifts may quickly turn a fun and amazing holiday into an unplanned and painful trip to the ER.

It isn’t just baby toys and lithium batteries that are unsafe. Even things that are considered to be completely safe can cause an injury. More than 345,000 people recently went to the hospital because of injuries caused by clothing, for example.

This doesn’t mean that you should refrain from giving any gifts this season, you just need to be aware of the steps you can take if you suffer an injury because of a defective holiday gift.

Product Liability Cases in Florida

Today’s product manufacturers have the responsibility to make sure they are not putting defective or dangerous products out on the market. They have to adhere to very stringent standards to ensure customers remain safe while using their products.

Unfortunately, this isn’t always what happens. This is especially the case if there’s a “hot” item on the market that manufacturers want to get to the shelves as quickly as possible. If a product is not properly tested, then other negligence may cause an injury or some type of financial damages. In these situations, the victim who suffered the injury can file a liability lawsuit against the manufacturer to recover compensation.

Getting to Know the Different Types of Product Liability Lawsuits

Usually, a product liability lawsuit is going to fall into one of the three following categories:

  • Manufacturing defects
  • Design defects
  • Failure to warn

Preparing for the Uphill Battle When Filing a Product Liability Lawsuit

Taking action against a large manufacturer may feel as though you are fighting an uphill battle. While this is true, there are a few steps you can take to help you along the way. These steps include:

  • Seek treatment for any injuries and maintain copies of medical records and treatment costs
  • Look at the warning labels on the products that caused the injuries
  • Write down anything you can remember about your personal experience with the product in question
  • See if there have been any product recalls or class action lawsuits filed for the product

Remember, when something is defective, it may not cause an injury immediately. In fact, it could be several weeks or months before this type of accident occurs. You may also not hear about the recalls or class-action lawsuits. What this means is that even if you suffered an injury from a gift that you received last year; you may still have options to recover compensation.

According to Florida law, you have four years from the time of the injury to file a product liability lawsuit. If the defect resulted in a wrongful death, you have two years to file a lawsuit. Remember, these legal proceedings may take a while to settle, so it’s best to get started now, rather than waiting.

If you have been injured because of a defective holiday gift, or any product, the best thing you can do is to contact our legal team at Fetterman & Associates by calling 561-845-2510.