What if you were severely injured when your air bag deployed during a very minor traffic accident? What if your father had a heart attack while taking Vioxx? What if you used a new product to color your hair and ended up with a painful rash? In the first two examples, you might have a strong product liability claim. (You don't have a claim against the hair color company, because every product is clearly labeled advising an allergy test before use.)

Three Types of Product Defects

There are three ways in which a product can be legally deemed defective. A manufacturing defect is a dangerous flaw in materials or workmanship, such as a single tire with a weak spot. A design defect means that all units of an individual product are dangerously flawed in the same way. An example would be cribs designed with rails far enough apart that a child's head could get caught.

A marketing defect means that there is no real flaw in the product, but that no warnings or instructions were provided by the seller regarding risks posed and safe usage. An example might be a cleaning product that creates a hazardous chemical when mixed with bleach. In and of itself, it's not a dangerous product, but if there is no warning about combining it with bleach, the company may be liable for any injuries.

It's important to note that product defect suits are entirely different from negligence suits. Product defect liability is limited to the product itself, and the actions of the producers and sellers are not relevant. A negligence action focuses completely on the actions of the manufacturers, and is intended to discover whether they exercised reasonable and appropriate care in designing and producing the product.