Giant Internet retailers like Amazon are coming under increasing fire for selling defective products to American consumers.
The Washington Post, which is owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is among the media outlets reporting U.S. regulators are reviewing anti-trust concerns amid allegations the company is misleading consumers about product safety.
Fort Myers defective product lawyers know today’s Internet economy continues to vie with big box stores like Wal-Mart and Costco for consumer dollars. Each owes a duty to consumers when it comes to product safety, regardless of whether a purchase is made online or at a brick-and-mortar retailer.
Dangerous Products on Amazon
The Federal Trade Commission is investigating whether Amazon engaged in widespread deception in marketing and selling thousands of products despite such products having been deemed unsafe by federal regulators. In other cases, products were deceptively labeled or had been banned altogether.
“This article raises real concerns about whether Amazon is profiting from widespread deception on its platform,” Federal Trade Commissioner Rohit Chopra tweeted. “Deceptive acts or practices can threaten our health and safety, and are unlawful under the FTC Act.”
A Wall Street Journal investigation found 4,152 unsafe items listed for sale on Amazon. The company removed many after the news outlet made it aware of a variety of safety issues.
In reacting to the allegations, Amazon said the company takes steps to avoid listing dangerous or defective products but that third-party merchants that sell on the site are ultimately responsible for product safety.
Dangerous or Defective Product Lawsuits
Experienced defective product attorneys in Fort Myers and Cape Coral know that is not the case. Any entity involved in the manufacturer, sale, marketing or delivery of a dangerous or defective product to the American consumer can be held responsible for resulting injuries or other damages. This is true regardless of whether a voluntary or mandatory safety recall has been issued by the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission.
Typically, product liability claims are based on state laws and brought under the theories of negligence, strict liability, or breach of warranty. In addition, a set of commercial statutes in each state, modeled on the Uniform Commercial Code, contains warranty rules affecting product liability. The most common claims involving dangerous or defective products are the result of design defects, manufacturing defects, 0r marketing defects. In many cases, strict liability holds manufacturers and sellers strictly accountable for injuries resulting from dangerous or unsafe products, regardless of whether the manufacturer knew of such defects or otherwise acted negligently. This is true so long as the consumer was using the product as intended, or as reasonably foreseeable.
While 58-percent of the 500 million items for sale on Amazon are listed by third-party vendors, Amazon may still be found legally negligent for facilitating such sales when serious or fatal injuries result from use of a defective product. These are complex cases best handled by personal injury law firms with extensive experience in defective product litigation.
If you or a loved one is injured, call Associates and Bruce L. Scheiner, Attorneys for the Injured, at 1-800-646-1210.