Product liability is when manufacturers and businesses are held responsible when their products cause injury to the consumer. Although you can’t always predict when a product might malfunction, there are ways to stay protected as a consumer.

1. Stay away from products known to malfunction.

Some products have such severe malfunctions that it becomes widely spread news. For example, Samsung’s exploding phones in 2016, those toy hover boards exploding in 2015, and the bending iPhone 6 in 2014 (although these didn’t cause any injuries—only annoyance) were all product malfunctions that were widely covered in the news.

The first step to protecting yourself and your family from product liability is staying away from products like these to ensure the malfunction doesn’t happen to you. If you’ve already bought a product that has been announced to have issues, put it aside. If it was a large expense, like a car or a smartphone, and the company is failing to recall it, try to use it sparingly and keep it away from you when not in use.

2. Pay attention to product recalls.

There are a number of fatalities and serious injuries due to consumers not paying attention to product recalls. Sometimes things happen during manufacturing and a product simply doesn’t turn out the way it was supposed to.

As soon as a company finds out about any mass issues with their product, they are supposed to issue a recall. Be sure to stay up-to-date on any product recalls for merchandise you’ve bought. If a product has been recalled and you continue using it, resulting in an injury, it can complicate your defective product case.

3. Speak with a personal injury lawyer.

If you or a loved one has been injured by a malfunctioning product, you can file a defective product suit against the company. If there are any defects with a product, the CPA states that the producer of that product is liable.

The term “defective” essentially means that the product acts in a way that was not expected. Like, for example, a cell phone exploding—definitely not expected.

Speaking with a personal injury attorney like one at The May Firm can help with your defective product case. We’ll fight for you and your family to get the compensation you deserve to cover any damages a defective or malfunctioning product has caused. Call us today to schedule a consultation to tell us about your case.