Lexis Nexis
Gary W. Starnes Attorney at Law
736 Georgia Avenue
Suite 404 Dome Bldg.
Chattanooga, TN 37402
Phone (800)281-2403
Fax (423) 266-7193
Email: gstarnes@volstate.net
Personal Injury Attorney
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Consumer Protection
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Which government agency is responsible for ensuring the products you purchase are safe for you and your family to use? None of them. Although various categories of products are regulated by at least six different agencies, these regulations establish only the bare minimum that manufacturers must do to be allowed to market their products. Manufacturers have the first and final responsibility to ensure their products are safe. And you, as a consumer who has been hurt or lost a loved one as a result of a defective or dangerous product, have a vital role to play.
Your product liability lawsuit can force manufacturers to recognize the true cost of their negligence in manufacturing and marketing a dangerous product. It can also call attention to dangerous products, whether they have or have not been recalled, and hopefully prevent others from suffering similar injuries. To learn more about your role in consumer protection, please call or email Gary Starnes, Attorney at Law, today for a free initial consultation.
The Role of Government Agencies in Consumer Protection
Sometimes people imagine that government agencies are gatekeepers that keep dangerous products out of the marketplace. But government agencies like the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) never certify that a product is safe, only that a product is not known to be dangerous. In the words of an FDA scientist, "determination that a drug is 'safe for use' is not a finding of fact, but an opinion . . . . too few patients are exposed to a drug during commercial development to capture adverse drug induced phenomena." The same is true for cars and consumer products. Unfortunately, there is no test like the real world. Instead, agencies like the FDA and the NHTSA set up standards for minimum testing that can give some assurance of safety, but focus much energy on collecting reports of "adverse events" and reporting them to the manufacturers. They may also perform independent investigations of adverse events and potential defects and recommend recalls when appropriate and help manufacturers publicize and perform recalls.
The Role of Manufacturers in Consumer Protection
Manufacturers are the ones who design products and perform the majority of testing to ensure they have a good, marketable product. They are in a unique position to identify design defects before the product is marketed and endangers consumers.
Manufacturers also know what a product is designed to do and how it is intended to be used, and therefore are in a unique position to write labels, instructions, and warnings about how a product can be used and what types of uses may lead to adverse events or unintended consequences.
Manufacturers also understand the process by which their products are made. They know which components are made where and can identify the ramifications of any defective part once identified. They are in a unique position to identify manufacturing defects and, once identified, determine the effects and reach of those defects.
No one knows as much about a product as its manufacturer, and therefore no one has as much responsibility to ensure the safety of that product as its manufacturer. Unfortunately, this does not mean that manufacturers always live up to their responsibility. Sometimes, they may know of a risk or danger, but continue to market a product, hoping to make a profit anyway, despite the risk to consumers.
Your Role in Consumer Protection
If you or a loved one has been injured by a defective or dangerous product, there are several things you should do to help protect others from suffering a similar injury. Report the injury and defect to the manufacturer and the appropriate government agency. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is responsible for most consumer products, and has this guide for which agency regulates other products.
In response to your report, the manufacturer may offer to help with medical or other expenses related to your injury, but you should not take the offer until after you have spoken with a product liability lawyer. In many cases, these offers are part of a cost-control strategy for ensuring the profitability of injurious products.
Filing a product liability lawsuit may be a better option, for you and for ensuring consumer protection. It may increase your compensation, and, in the process, increase the cost of injuries for the company that marketed the defective product. This holds the company responsible for the injuries it caused and makes it harder for companies to keep making profits on dangerous or defective products.
To learn more about the role of your product liability lawsuit in consumer protection, please call or email Personal Injury Attorney, Gary Starnes in Chattanooga, Tennessee for a free consultation.