What happens when I am injured from a defective product I bought online?

The rise in online shopping, and your purchase of any product from a retailer, could have implications on whether and how you recover compensation for injuries. The experienced product liability attorneys at Schauermann Thayer could hold anyone who was involved in the stream of commerce legally accountable for your injuries.

In any product liability case, it is essential that you build a record and document your case to put you in the strongest legal position. Not only would you need to prove that the product was defective, but you may also need to show that you are the one who actually purchased it. Thus, you must Preserve any evidence of both the defect and your purchase that are in your possession to help your legal case.

Schedule a free initial consultation with the product liability Attorneys at Schauermann & Thayer today. We can work with expert witnesses to prove that the product was defective, which could put you in a position to be paid for your injuries.

You May Be Entitled to Compensation for Defective Online Products

Most people regularly buy products online. Not every product arrives and performs as you expect it. In some cases, you or a family member may even have been injured by a defective product. If you can prove that a defective product injured you, you may be entitled to financial compensation.

If you have been injured by a defective product, there are many steps that you would need to take before you can receive financial compensation. The first thing that you need to do is take care of your health. Always make sure to see a doctor as soon as you can to have your injuries treated and diagnosed. You would need to establish a connection between the defective product and your injuries, and delaying any medical treatment may disrupt the chain of causation.

Do Everything You Can to Document Your Purchase and Your Injuries

You could also take steps to report the defect to the relevant authorities. This may both trigger further investigation and also offer help to document your own case. If you have purchased a defective product, you should report it to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. You can also report a product defect on the state level or to the attorney general.

There is a fine line between a product being damaged in shipping and it being defective. Defective products could entitle you to damages from anyone who was involved in the stream of commerce. However, if the product was damaged during shipping, liability for injuries gets more complicated. Either way, experts who your product liability attorney would obtain would help determine whether a product was defective and whether you can sue.

Make sure that you save the actual product, and preserve it as best you can. The retailer will ask you to send the product back to them, but you would need to document the harm that was done to you and prove that the product was defective. When you hire a product liability lawyer, make sure to give them the actual product, both for safekeeping and for them to work with an expert to prove that it was defective. Before you do that, take as many contemporaneous pictures of the product as you can and back them up to the cloud or another safe place.

You should also retain all documentation that proves that you purchased the product. If you bought it on an app or online, make sure to take a screenshot of your purchase so you can provide it to your product liability attorney. In addition, you should keep as much of the original packaging as possible to show that you were the one who bought the product. If you are filing a product liability lawsuit under a breach of warranty theory, you would need to show that there is a contractual relationship between you and the seller, namely that you were the one who bought it.

Be very careful about accepting anything from the merchant if they offer it. The merchant is trying to protect themselves, and they may offer you something in exchange for your legal rights. This may foreclose your ability to sue in the future. Although you should report the defect to the merchant, you should not try to negotiate any solution with them on your own.

Hire a Product Liability Lawyer Immediately

Above all, you should hire a product liability attorney immediately after you have been injured. Product liability lawsuits can be difficult legal exercises because defendants fight them with everything that they have. Chances are that you were not the only person who was injured by a defective product. If the defendant is liable to you, they are also likely liable to many other people. A product liability attorney can work with the necessary experts to establish that the product was defective, potentially putting you in a position to receive financial compensation for your injuries.

Contact a Washington Product Liability Law Firm Today

If you have been injured by a defective product, learn more about your legal rights by calling the product liability lawyers at Scheuermann Thayer. Our product liability attorneys are not afraid of taking on large companies and their high-priced lawyers. Call us today at 360-695-4244 or visit us line to schedule a free initial consultation.