If you’ve been injured at work, you are probably aware that you may have the right to file a workers’ compensation claim against your employer. As part of your workers’ compensation claim, you can recover lost wages and medical bills. However, you typically cannot recover for non-economic losses such as pain and suffering. You might be able to recover these damages if your injury was the result of negligence by a third party.
If your work injury was the result of a defective product or piece of equipment, you might have the right to file a claim against the manufacturer or distributor of the product. Equipment or other products that have been defectively designed, manufactured, or fail to contain adequate warnings of danger can all cause serious injuries in the workplace.
Types of Product Liability Claims
There are three main categories of product liability claims that may apply to defective equipment in the workplace. These include:
- Design defect—You may have a product liability claim if the equipment that injured you at work suffered from a design defect. This means that a whole line of products is defective because it was not safely designed. The defect in the product existed before it was even manufactured.
- Manufacturing defects—workplace products that contain manufacturing defects became unsafe due to errors in the manufacturing process. In manufacturing defect cases it is only the individual product that is unsafe, not the entire product line.
- Failure to warn—manufacturers of products have a duty to warn the users of the products of possible danger associated with the product. This includes providing adequate safety instructions.
Defective Products in the Workplace
A workplace product liability claim can arise as the result of a defect in virtually any type of item. Some common products that may be defective in the workplace include:
- Manufacturing equipment
- Safety guards or features
- Protective clothing
- Construction materials
- Cranes, backhoes, and other heavy equipment
- Power tools
- Ladders
- Vehicles
- Cranes or scaffolding
- Electronic equipment
- Office furniture
Consult an Experienced Product Liability Attorney
If you’ve been injured at work due to a defective product, you should have an experienced attorney evaluate your case. At Bonina & Bonina, P.C., we have over 50 years of experience helping New Yorkers injured by defective products. Contact us online or call us at 1-888-MEDLAW1 to schedule your free consultation. Home and hospital visits are available. Se habla español.]]>