Consumers put a lot of trust in consumers prior to purchasing their products. The company has to reassure the consumers that the product they are offering will work without defects. However, companies are not always able to keep all products from being defective. The result is thousands of injuries reported each year due to these defects, as any personal injury lawyer in Santa Clara will tell you.

When a consumer is injured after using a product, there is a legal suit that can follow. It’s not as cut and dry as you may think. First of all, it must be determined that the consumer was using the product safely and as specified in the manual. If the consumer was using the product safely and as instructed, it must then be proven that the product did in fact have a malfunction. During this time, the consumer will most likely hire a professional to represent him or her in a product liability case.

Who Can be Held Responsible for Injuries?

It is important to note that there are several different parties that are liable for a product when it is created and before it lands in the hands of the consumer. You have the manufacturers who create the product, the sellers who sold the consider the product, and everyone in between involved in the creating, making, and packing. It is a law that consumers are protected every step of the way. These laws are to ensure that consumers can trust that their products are safe. They spend their hard-earned money to purchase the products. The chain of responsibility goes like this:

• First the manufacturer makes the product.
• The party that assembled the product
• The retail store that ends up selling the product to the consumer
• The party who installed the product if needed
• The wholesaler of the product

What Do I Need to Prove?

If you received an injury due to using a product, you will want to bring a personal injury lawsuit forward toward the company. You will then be known as the plaintiff in this type of case. While you are putting your claim together, there are a few things that you will need to ensure you can prove:

• The product was defective and/ or it malfunctioned in some form
• The product had a flaw and that is what caused the malfunction which ultimately caused your injuries
• The product that was defective did cause your injury

When figuring up the cost of your claim, you need to consider the medical expense involved in your injury; medical bills from the hospital, doctor visits, rehabilitation, therapy, prescriptions, ongoing medical costs, lost wages as well as future lost wages, pain and suffering.

How Long After an Injury Can I File?

Once you receive an injury, you want to contact a lawyer as soon as you can. Go to the hospital and get the medical attention you need and then seek assistance from a professional lawyer who specializes in this type of injury.