Takata Airbags

Attorneys for Victims of Defective Consumer Products in Traverse City and Grand Rapids

Sometimes, a product recall or consumer product liability lawsuit involves only a few products. In the case of Takata airbags, however, tens of millions of allegedly defective units are potentially involved. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (the federal agency charged with maintaining safety on the nation’s roadways), numerous injuries and deaths have been blamed on Takata airbag inflators that have purportedly exploded. If your family has been affected by a defective Takata airbag, you should talk to a Grand Rapids or Traverse City airbag injury lawyer about the possibility of filing a claim for compensation. At the Neumann Law Group, we help Michigan residents assert their legal rights following a consumer product injury.

Claims asserted for a wrongful death or injuries caused by a defective or dangerous product must be filed in a timely fashion. Unlike negligence claims arising from a car accident or slip and fall on another party’s property, product liability claims can be subject to both a statute of limitations and a statute of repose. A statute of limitations typically begins to run on the date of the accident giving rise to the litigation. For instance, if a person is injured in a car accident caused by another motorist, and his or her airbag explodes, causing serious injuries, the statute of limitations usually begins running on the day of the accident for both the product liability case against the maker of the airbag and the ordinary negligence action against the driver who caused the crash. When a statute of repose is applicable, however, an airbag injury attorney in Traverse City or Grand Rapids may need to take action sooner. The time period during which a claim may be made can be defined differently, such as a certain number of years from the date that the product was initially purchased, sold, or put into the stream of commerce.

Seek Fair Compensation Following a Defective Airbag Injury

When someone is hurt by an exploding Takata airbag, he or she may be entitled to monetary compensation for medical expenses (both those that have already been incurred and those reasonably expected to be necessary in the future), lost earnings (wages lost prior to trial due to injuries suffered in the accident plus any estimated loss of future earning capacity), and pain and suffering. If the injured person was married at the time of the airbag explosion, his or her spouse may join in the action to assert a claim for loss of spousal consortium. A Grand Rapids or Traverse City airbag injury attorney can help you determine all of the claims that may be available to you.

The overall value of each case can vary substantially, depending upon the age, health, marital status, and occupation of the injured individual, as well as the particular physical harm resulting from a product that contained a design or manufacturing defect. Occasionally, a defendant’s actions will be found to be so egregious that a trial court decides to allow the jury to determine whether punitive damages may be awarded, but these cases are rare.

Talk to a Lawyer About Your Airbag Injury Claim

Product liability litigation is complicated. In addition to issues such as the statutes of limitations and repose and the damages that the plaintiff may seek, there are numerous issues concerning the theory of liability under which the case will be pursued, such as defective design, failure to warn, or a manufacturing defect. To learn more about holding the maker, seller, or wholesaler of a defective product like a Takata airbag liable for injuries or a wrongful death, contact the Neumann Law Group. Our airbag injury lawyers assist clients in Grand Rapids and Traverse City, as well as Ann Arbor, Flint, Lansing, Muskegon, Midland, Holland, Kalamazoo, Detroit, Wyoming, Saginaw, Warren, Petoskey, and the Upper Peninsula. For a free consultation, give us a call at (800) 525-6386 or contact us online, and we will be happy to schedule an appointment for you.