Another lawsuit has been filed against car company General Motors – this time in the Orleans Parish Civil District Court this past December. A New Orleans woman named Patricia Collins claims that her 2005 Pontiac car malfunctioned by deploying airbags suddenly, with no warning. The complaint alleges that the plaintiff was driving her vehicle in a “safe and prudent” manner last January, when the “Supplemental Inflatable Restraint” (SIR) system malfunctioned and deployed the airbags. General Motors is accused of designing and manufacturing an SIR system that is defective because they may deploy unexpectedly without a collision. Ms. Collins is also suing Ibrahim’s Autoplex LLC, the used car company where she purchased her car, for allegedly selling defective products. She claims she suffered a permanent serious injury, pain and suffering, expenses for medical bills, loss of income, permanent disability, and a wrist injury.
This is not the first time General Motors has faced legal action over products liability issues. The troubled company was served with a $3 billion dollar lawsuit by the Arizona Attorney General’s Office back in November for a faulty ignition switch that forced a General Motors recall of 2.6 million vehicles. The faulty ignition switch has been linked to at least 33 deaths and many more injuries. In addition to the ignition problems, the Arizona lawsuit outlines multiple defects with GM vehicles involving seat belts, brake lights, airbags and transmission cables. Additionally, there have been multiple private lawsuits brought forth.
What is Products Liability?
Product liability laws were developed to protect consumers from being injured by poorly designed or manufactured products. The theory of product liability refers to figuring out who is responsible for the injuries caused by defective or dangerous products. It is a mixture of torts law and contracts law. Because this area of law is hybrid in nature, a plaintiff may assert a number of possible claims, such as negligence, breach of implied warranty, breach of express warranty, or fraud.
Historically, a contractual relationship (“privity of contract,”) had to exist between the person injured by a product and the supplier of the product in order for the victim to recover. Nowadays, any person who foreseeably could have been injured by a defective product can recover for his or her injuries, and they do not have to be the purchaser of the defective product in order to recover. Typically, the manufacturer or seller is held liable for placing a defective product into the hands of a consumer. This means that the defective product must have made its way into the marketplace for liability to arise.
Get Legal Help for Your Injuries
Major injuries cause substantial hardship on the victims as well as their loved ones. Harrell & Nowak zealously represents people who have suffered irreparable injuries or have been injured by defective products. We have recovered millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts on behalf of clients, and a success rate of 90% in our litigation. If you have or a loved one has been injured contact our New Orleans personal injury law firm today for a free, confidential consultation.