Millions of Americans are injured by defective products every year. In fact, the National Safety Council reports that there were more than 15 million injuries from consumer products in 2024 alone. If you have been hurt by a defective product, you may be able to recover compensation through a product liability claim.
Product liability claims in Texas follow a legal concept known as strict liability. Under this rule, manufacturers may be held legally responsible for any injuries resulting from a defective product even if no carelessness was present. Simply by introducing a defective product into the stream of commerce, they may face liability for any resulting injuries.
What Is a Defective Product?
To win your claim, you will need to prove that the product was defective.
Products are considered defective in Texas if they meet one of these criteria:
- Design defects: The design of the product itself is inherently unsafe.
- Manufacturing defects: Issues with the manufacturing process made the product unsafe. This may include the process itself or the use of subpar materials or parts.
- Marketing defects (Failure to warn): The product lacks adequate warnings about the safe use of the product. This may also include a failure to warn about non-obvious dangers or dangerous uses of the product.
To win a design defect claim in Texas, you must show that a safer, feasible alternative design existed and that the defect directly caused your injuries.
Who Can Be Held Liable for a Defective Product in Texas?
Product liability claims are not always limited to the company that manufactured the product. Depending on the circumstances, multiple parties in the chain of distribution may be responsible for your injuries.
Potentially liable parties may include:
- The product manufacturer
- The manufacturer of a defective component or part
- The company that assembled the product
Determining who is responsible often requires a thorough investigation into how the product was designed, manufactured, and sold. An experienced product liability lawyer can identify all potentially liable parties and pursue the full compensation available under Texas law.
What Types of Damages Can I Recover After Being Injured by a Defective Product?
Defective products can cause substantial injuries in some cases. Victims who are hurt by a defective product may be entitled to recover both economic and non-economic damages.
Economic damages provide compensation for your financial losses, such as:
- Medical bills
- Lost wages
- Lost benefits
- Out-of-pocket expenses
- Physical therapy
- Future reduced earning capacity
Non-economic damages provide compensation for your physical and emotional pain and trauma.
This includes items such as:
- Pain and suffering
- Emotional distress
- Mental anguish
- Loss of consortium
- Diminished quality of life
- Permanent scarring or disfigurement
- Permanent disability
- Loss of enjoyment of life
In some cases, you might also be entitled to recover punitive damages. However, these damages are only available in egregious or outrageous cases. Punitive damages are designed to punish the product manufacturer for their conduct. To win these damages, you must prove by clear and convincing evidence that the manufacturer engaged in fraud, malice, or gross negligence.
What Should I Do If I’m Hurt by a Defective Product?
Knowing what to do after a defective product accident can help protect your legal rights. This can preserve your right to recover compensation.
After being hurt by a defective product, you should:
Seek Immediate Medical Treatment
Get medical treatment for any injuries right away. Failure to seek treatment could hurt a future personal injury claim should you need to file one. Make sure you tell the doctors what caused your injury so that they can document it in your file.
Keep the Product and All Documentation
Do NOT throw away the product that caused your injuries.
Keep the product along with all documentation, such as:
- Product packaging
- Receipts
- Owner’s manual
Also, take photos of the product as well as your injuries. Save all your medical bills and document all the time missed from work.
Do Not Give Any Statements
You should not give a statement to the product manufacturer or their insurance company without talking to a lawyer. They will use what you say against you, and they will use your own statements to minimize the value of your claim.
Seek Help From a Lawyer
Get help from an experienced personal injury lawyer as soon as possible. Your time to file a claim is limited, so do not wait until it is too late. Your lawyer can help protect your rights and help you pursue all the compensation you are owed.
Contact Our Dallas Product Liability Lawyers at Benton Accident & Injury Lawyers for a Free Consultation
If you have been injured by a defective product, contact the experienced team at Benton Accident & Injury Lawyers today. We have helped our clients recover millions of dollars in compensation, and we are ready to help you, too. Our team knows what it takes to win even the most complex defective product claims.
Contact us today at (214) 556-8321 to schedule your free consultation with a product liability lawyer and let us put our experience to work for you.
