Tampa Product Liability Lawyer

Tampa Product Liability Attorney

Fortunately, we live in a country where we are free to purchase all of the goods and services we need to make our lives easier and more fulfilling. Unfortunately, not every product we buy lives up to its expected potential, and if you purchased a defective product that caused serious physical harm, you must retain the services of an experienced Tampa product liability lawyer. Fortunately, though this is not an everyday occurrence here in Florida, people are injured by defective products far more often than you may think. If you are someone who has been harmed by a defective product in Tampa, Hillsborough County, or anywhere in Florida, there is a very good chance that you will have a valid product liability lawsuit, wherein you can seek the financial compensation you need to heal. Read on and contact The Frank Santini Law Firm to schedule your initial consultation so we can begin fighting for your rightful compensation today.

Why Hire a Tampa Product Liability Lawyer?

Product liability is a complex area of law, which is why you must hire an experienced Tampa personal injury lawyer who can analyze each aspect of your situation and productively work to determine the liable party and recover the compensation you deserve.

Types of Product Liability Claims

Unfortunately, there are various ways in which products can become unsafe for public use, which is why there are three primary types of product liability lawsuits. They are as follows:

• Negligent Product Design: When a company designs a product, it is tasked with ensuring that the product is safe for public use. When a product is inherently flawed in its design, it may be unsafe for consumers to use. To win a product liability lawsuit on the basis of a negligent design, you will have to prove that there was a safer, yet still economically feasible way to design the product that would not hinder its overall function and usefulness.
• Negligent Product Manufacturer: In many cases, after a product is safely designed and sent out to manufacturers, the initially safe blueprint can quickly become very dangerous if the manufacturer takes negligent actions. For example, if a product manufacturer diverts from the initially safe blueprint either to save time and money or out of sheer negligence, the product can quickly become unsafe for public use.
• Failure to Warn: All products that may pose any sort of safety risk must come equipped with a label that warns consumers of any potential danger. For example, many toys for small children are required to come with choking hazard labels. Additionally, power tools, such as chainsaws, are required to come with warning labels to demonstrate exactly how to (and how not) use the product to encourage safe usage. When companies fail to place these warnings on their products, unsuspecting consumers can sustain serious injuries as a result.

Examples of Product Liability Cases

Unfortunately, virtually any product can pose a serious risk of injury if improperly designed, manufactured, or absent of a warning label. Product defects often occur in the auto industry, such as when design flaws cause automobiles to accelerate uncontrollably, or even prevent cars from braking without notice. In the past, we have also seen defective airbags, batteries, seat belts, and more. These defects can also occur in household items such as pressure cookers, microwaves, toys, and even baby cribs. Oftentimes, we see faulty equipment on construction sites, such as defective scaffolds. Rather obviously, all of these defective products can lead to serious injury, and if you were injured due to a defective product, or a product that failed to warn you of certain safety hazards, you will most likely have a valid product liability claim.

Proving a Product Liability Claim

As with any personal injury claim, to recover financial compensation, you will have to satisfy the burden of proof, meaning you must demonstrate that you were injured as a direct result of another party’s negligence. When it comes to product liability claims, there are several steps you should take to maximize your chances of winning your claim in Tampa. They are as follows:

1. Call the police. Not only will they send an ambulance that will transport you to a hospital for treatment, but they will also file a police report, documenting the incident.
2. If there were witnesses of the accident, ask them for their contact information.
3. Take pictures of the scene of the accident, and if there was surveillance footage of the accident as it happened, ensure you obtain and preserve that footage.
4. Seek medical treatment immediately. Not only is your health the most important thing, but you can also receive medical documentation from your physician concerning the origin and extent of your injuries.
5. While it may be tempting, do not throw away the defective product. Keep it just as is, as our firm can use the product itself as evidence to prove your personal injury claim.
6. Hire a knowledgeable Tampa product liability lawyer who can work to gather and present all additional evidence needed to prove your product liability claim.

Statute of Limitations for Product Liability Claims in Florida

After sustaining an injury due to a defective product, you must take legal action within the state’s statute of limitations. In Florida, you will generally have four years from the date of the accident to file your product liability lawsuit. However, you should also note that Florida law has a discovery rule in place that states individuals who’ve been injured by a product with an expected useful life of 10 years or less will have 12 years from the date of the delivery of the product to the product’s first purchaser to file their product liability claim, in accordance with the statute of repose, with certain exceptions.

Contact our Tampa Product Liability Lawyer

No one should have to sustain a serious injury simply because they placed their trust in a product that turned out to be defective. If you were injured by a defective product in Florida or anywhere throughout Hillsborough County, the most important thing you can do is retain the services of a knowledgeable attorney who has decades of experience handling product liability lawsuits. Contact The Frank Santini Law Firm today to schedule your initial consultation.