Product liability law developed very gradually through the course of the 20th century, and has come a long way from where it originally began. It used to be that nobody could sue for injury from using a product if they weren’t the one who had the original contract with the manufacturer. So if such laws applied today, if you got shocks from a faulty power supply in a drill you bought at the hardware store, you couldn’t sue because the store and the manufacturer were the ones with the contract.
The first changes came when exceptions were made for products that were “inherently” or “imminently dangerous,” like guns, explosives, food and a few other health related products. But gradually the assumption was made that if any item could be expected to place health or life in peril, and if the product was negligently constructed, then liability should apply to those other products as well. It didn’t matter if you had a contract or not with the manufacturer. Finally, the idea of “strict liability” took hold, stemming from the concept that there is an implied warranty on items, which follows them down the purchasing chain.
What this means is that even if you didn’t buy the item, but it was defective and injured you, product liability law states that the manufacturer is still liable. You don’t even need to prove negligence, because that’s already demonstrated by the product’s failure. “Strict liability” stared with food, then again moved through various health products, and eventually was applied to all consumer products as well. New Jersey and California were the first to make these changes in the early 1960s, but now all other states have done so as well, and all follow the Uniform Commercial Code, in which these laws are contained.
Only a slight rein has been put on product liability law in recent years, as some protections have been restored to retailers, who frequently play little role except to pass to the consumer the boxed items they get from the manufacturer. Retailers had been sued, as those with “deep pockets,” when the actual manufacturer was out of reach, and this wasn’t entirely reasonable. What is means for you, as a seller of products, is that even if you assume you’re under strict liability for those products, you should check the specific details in every state in which you do business.
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