Defective products, safety recalls: 2016 denoted as singular year

Here are a couple quick and obvious realities related to manufactured products that are made available to consumers through the market mainstream.

First, and notwithstanding the efforts of product designers, makers, wholesalers, retailers and other parties to ensure safety, problematic features do occasionally surface with some goods and merchandise. As a result, safety recalls are issued. Consumers sometimes suffer personal injuries.

Second, such an outcome seldom owes to any willful behavior or disregard for public safety from actors within the supply stream. Participants involved in the creation and sale of publicly consumed products know that their reputation is on the line when their name is linked with select goods and services, and they logically want to safeguard their integrity by promoting product safety to the fullest extent possible at all times.

It is always big news when product recalls related to safety are issued by government regulators, or voluntarily by manufacturers, and understandably so.

And that is especially true concerning children’s products. One recent media story reports that products used by kids were recalled last year at a rate not seen since 2004.

That is of course instantly notable, with all concerned Americans well appreciating the need to get defective products off the market and timely advise the consuming public of any dangers posed by them.

Consumers — both adults and children — obviously have reasonable expectations that the goods they use are safe for their intended purpose.

At the same time, product manufacturers and sellers have a lawful right to defend themselves against claims of alleged defects with their goods. Although in some instances it is ultimately established that a product deficiency was materially related to a consumer’s injury, cases also often occur in which experienced legal defense against a defect claim proves a lack of liability on the part of a defendant in court.

Americans uniformly want a commercial realm in which product safety is both paramount and a commonplace. Such an environment is optimally promoted through a rational recall scheme that withholds judgment regarding defect-related claims until all material facts have been dispassionately and fully examined.