Most people have ordered a product off Amazon and have been woefully disappointed by the cheap item that arrives. While many of us wasted our money on poorly made products, the most unlucky of us have been seriously injured by these defective products.
In some cases, the defective products can result in injuries that require hospitalization or even death. These can be due to fires caused by malfunctioning wires or head injuries from falling objects.
CNN detailed the harrowing experience of Austin Parra, a young man who ordered a phone charger from Amazon. While he was sleeping, the charger started sparking in the middle of the night, and the sparks made a nearby chair catch on fire.
Luckily everyone was safe in this situation, but this 911 call made CNN conduct an inquiry. Shockingly, they found that since 2016, at least 1,500 reviews of more than 70 products on Amazon have incurred complaints that the products are dangerously defective. These reviews mention explosions, fires, smoking, melting, and other kinds of electrical malfunctions that pose risks to consumer safety.
Amazon has a seemingly endless array of products on their site, some manufactured and sold by Amazon, and others manufactured by third parties and sold by Amazon. Some may think that Amazon would not be liable for any injuries incurred from faulty products manufactured by third-party companies, but a California appeals court recently ruled the opposite.
A California woman named Angela Bolger sought out the services of a product liability attorney in Sherman Oaks after she suffered severe burns when a laptop battery she bought off Amazon from a third-party manufacturer exploded on her.
The court first ruled in favor of Amazon since they were not the manufacturer, but the Court of Appeals later ruled in favor of the burn victim. Following the doctrine stated in the Communications Decency Act, Amazon was found liable for her injuries because, without Amazon, the sale would not have happened. Bolger was searching for a replacement battery from her laptop on Amazon, and the company chose to sell, market, and profit off this faulty product.
Selling a defective product is negligent, and Amazon should be held liable for any product injuries. If you are injured by a defective product, contact a product injury lawyer in Sherman Oaks. When you meet with a Sherman Oaks personal injury attorney, they can get started on filing your product liability claim for you so that Amazon has to pay for any bodily injuries and other damages you have suffered.