Trips to the emergency room are every parent’s worst nightmare. Yet, according to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission, each year, over 200,000 children are treated at hospital emergency rooms for toy-related injuries.
While some injuries are due to improper use, thousands of new toys hit the shelves every year, and unfortunately, not all are safe. If a defective toy injures your child, you may be able to file a product liability lawsuit.
Most personal injury cases are based on negligence; however, when the negligence is in relation to product design or manufacturing or a failure to warn appropriately, the intent is irrelevant, as long as the product was indeed defective.
When talking about toys, there are three types of toy-related product liability claims.
1. Manufacturing Defect
Toys under this category may be adequately designed but leave the manufacturer with an error, causing the toy to be unsafe.
Examples of a manufacturing defect include mechanical toys built with the wrong type of screws, parts attached incorrectly, or a crack in a critical component during the manufacturing process.
2. Defective Design
A product that fails to perform safely under reasonable expectations can be considered defectively designed. This means the design of the toy is harmful and is not related to a manufacturing process malfunction.
An example of a defective design may be a toy designed with severe choking hazards. In other words, toys designed as intended that turn out to be dangerous may fall under a defective design product liability.
3. Failure to Warn
Manufacturers and toymakers have a duty to warn parents of inherent product dangers. This is usually done through choking hazard warnings and marked age restrictions.
It is not required that manufacturers warn about every conceivable danger but rather dangers that occur while the product is being used as intended.
Defective toys can cause a whole host of injuries, including:
- Brain injuries
- Lacerations
- Fractures
- Burns
- Puncture wounds
- Choking
- Poisoning
There are two primary avenues for establishing liability in a toy defect lawsuit: negligence and strict liability. If your child was injured or killed by a defective toy, you might be able to file a lawsuit to recover damages for their injuries. Please contact our office today to discuss the merits of your case.
