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Product Liability Claims

Product manufacturers and distributors have the legal responsibility to offer consumer guarantees regarding the product’s safety and to provide clear communication of any and all risks. Failing to do so may be grounds for a product liability claim. If you have become injured as a result of a faulty product, a specialised product liability lawyer can help you to get the compensation you deserve.

During a free, non-obligation consultation, our solicitors will consider the merit of your case and advise you accordingly. You’ll also have the opportunity to get answers to any questions that you may have. If you decide to move forward with a product liability claim, you can trust that our team at GMP Law will provide you with committed, compassionate and competent representation. 

Reach out to book a free consultation today, or call us on 1800 004 878.

Overview

What Is A Product Liability Claim?

Sometimes an injury, whether at home, on the go or at work, is caused not by your actions but by defective goods that you were using. Injuries caused by equipment defects can be devastating, resulting in permanent disability, lost time at work and serious psychological damage. 

35
Years experience
Winning successful cases for our clients.
98%
SUCCESS RATE

Winning Product Liability Compensation

35,000
CLAIMS WON

That translates to billions of dollars for our clients.

35
Years Experience
No Fee
IF You Don'T Win YOur Case
Unique
Service GuarAntee

A product liability claim is a motion in court that holds the manufacturer of defective goods responsible for an injury that was the result of its use. A successful product liability case will involve a compensation package for the injured plaintiff. Product liability compensation typically comes in the form of a lump sum payment. The amount of payment that can be received as a part of a product liability claim is typically based on:

  • Past and future medical and rehabilitation expenses
  • The loss of wages and superannuation if the injury prevented you from working
  • Compensation for pain and suffering
  • Any past or future care that you may need that extends beyond typical medical care. This may include a wheelchair or home renovations made to accommodate a disability.
 

To be eligible to pursue a product liability case, a consumer must be able to show that some form of damage occurred and was the result of the product in question. If you have been injured, you should be sure to hold on to the responsible product for future review by an expert and to consult a medical professional. Inform your doctor about how the injury occurred. In some cases, a product liability compensation claim can be part of a larger personal injury claim.

If you are unsure if the circumstances of your injury warrant making a product liability claim, an experienced legal professional can help you determine if your case has merit. 

Gerard Malouf & Partners’ solicitors and barristers offer a free consultation and work on a “no win, no fee” basis, meaning there’s never any harm in investigating if your injury qualifies.

We're here to help

Contact us for no-obligation legal advice about your claim.

Product Liability Claims
Free Resources
Our guide to making product liability claims

If you have suffered from the effects of a faulty or broken product, our product liability guide will help outline the steps you can take to receive compensation.

PROCESS

How does the product liability claims process work?

The product liability claims process typically looks a little different than many other legal proceedings. A case can either be made as a civil proceeding or on statutory grounds. A civil case is based on a breach of an implied contract, in this case the promise that a product is safe for its intended use. In a statutory product liability case, meanwhile, the plaintiff is arguing that the manufacturer ran afoul of Australian law. Typically these cases will be based upon one or multiple provisions of the Australian Consumer Law (ACL). The burden of proof is typically higher in statutory cases, compared to common law cases. The ACL allows manufacturers to be held liable for the following, amongst other charges:

  • Products that are unfit for their disclosed purpose
  • Products that don’t fit with their description
  • Products that are not in compliance with their warranties
  • Products that do not correspond with, or are of a significantly lower quality, than their respective sample or demonstration model

 

Under the ACL, a consumer must begin legal action within three years of being injured as a result of a product. Many of the law’s tenets are focused not only on buyer safety but also on establishing consumer trust by making it harder for manufacturers to mislead consumers. As a result, charges can also be brought against a manufacturer that does not correspond to an injury.

To begin action against a manufacturer, a plaintiff will usually file both an application and a statement of claim in court. What parts of the case go in each document vary depending on the court that will be hearing the case. In Federal Court, for example, the application will include a description of the recourse that is being sought, while the statement of claim explains the basic facts of the case.

From there, both sides of the case will submit their written statements and evidence and prepare for their case to be heard by the court. In some cases, the court may request that both parties attempt to find an acceptable resolution in mediation and then present to the court. Only if no compromise can be reached will the case continue.

Free Resources
Our guide to making product liability claims

If you have suffered from the effects of a faulty consumer good, our product liability guide will help outline the steps you can take to receive compensation.

Gerard Malouf & Partners

A record of success

Experienced Lawyers

Working with legal representation is essential to winning favourable outcomes in the product liability claims process. 

The legal team at Gerard Malouf & Partners can help you understand whether you have a claim in an initial, no obligation consultation. Just call our lawyers if this is the answer you’ve been looking for. 

Our lawyers have managed claims taking on some of the largest manufacturers in Australia, we are experienced in managing faulty product compensation claims.

Working with legal representation is essential to winning favourable outcomes in the product liability claims process. The legal team at Gerard Malouf & Partners is the answer you’ve been looking for. Our lawyers are accustomed to taking on some of the largest manufacturers in Australia, and winning big settlements for our clients.

In one case, our client, a floor tiler operating in New South Wales, was awarded a significant settlement from the manufacturer of the faulty knee pads he was using. The man had been using the knee pads at work when one of the pads rolled to the side as he was picking up a tile, causing substantial damage to his right knee. As a result, the man required surgery that was unsuccessful, leaving him permanently disabled and unable to perform physical work of any kind, including the repetitive lifting, bending and twisting required of a roofer. Ultimately, our client also wound up injuring his left knee as a result of having to overuse it. The totality of injuries included medial meniscus tear of the right knee posterior horn medial meniscus tear, effusion and quadriceps atrophy, subtotal medial meniscectomy and associated scarring, removal of loose flaps of articular cartilage by chondroplasty, distress, psychological injury and shock. The injuries left the man in significant physical, emotional and financial distress and looking for solutions. Luckily, he found Gerard Malouf & Partners.

Our team of legal professionals got to work, first determining that the knee pads had been manufactured for the purpose of long manual labor, as the man had been using them. Once it was established that the man had been using the product correctly when he was injured, and thus had a potential case, we began searching for evidence. To prove liability, we had the knee pads examined and tested by an expert. They were able to show the pad’s latex internal lining could be degraded by sweat and some of the chemicals used in tiling. This made the product unsafe for many of the jobs it was purportedly designed for, including the work our client was doing.

A letter of claim was made against the manufacturer of the product. They undertook their own internal investigations and denied liability in the matter. As a result, our team entered into legal proceedings on our client’s behalf. We gathered expert testimony on the product’s issues, as well as from the man’s doctor on the impact the injuries had had on his quality of life. After the testimony, the court ordered that the case be handled in mediation before proceeding any further, where we were able to secure our client a satisfactory payment that would allow him to live comfortably despite his injuries.

Frequently Asked Questions

More information about faulty product compensation

Ask us anything about product liability claims 

Any product that causes injury through normal use and hasn’t been manipulated can be described as a faulty product. Regardless of whether this was a television which gave you an electric shock, a model car with a sharp edge or chair with a broken wheel, if you were injured by the product, you can make a product liability claim.

A no-win, no-fee lawyer can help you pursue your case without the financial risk that would usually be associated with a lawsuit.

Opting for a no-win, no-fee legal team means you will only be charged for their services if you succeed in your claim. This takes away a considerable amount of pressure, allowing you to proceed with a case without worrying about how to cover the costs if you lose.

Our Promise To You

Our Difficult Case Policy

At Gerard Malouf & Partners, it’s our professional obligation to strive for maximum justice and achievable compensation.

Our difficult case policy ensures that our senior lawyers and experienced management team oversee notably challenging cases. This makes sure that we achieve the best results for our clients seeking accident injury compensation.

We maintain integrity by not accepting a case if we believe it is unlikely to result in compensation, or if the costs to our client outweigh the benefits.

This is our core philosophy and what differentiates us from other law firms.

“I just want to thank you & your team for all the hard work you've done for us, we really appreciate it. We will highly recommend you to anyone. ”


Our Client

We're here to help maximise your compensation

Call us now on 1800 004 878 to book a free appointment with one of our compensation experts, or make an enquiry online now.

Gerard Malouf
About Us
Gerard Malouf & Partners have provided friendly, experienced legal advice to communities across Australia for over 35 years. Our Personal Injury Lawyers have taken on ten’s of thousands of cases and we are proud to have won billions of dollars for our clients.
Lawyers
Meet the diverse and dynamic team of compensation lawyers and supporting staff that have made this all happen below. Our multi-lingual team can discuss your claims in Arabic, Assyrian, Turkish, Greek, Italian, French, Serbian, Croatian, Armenian, Mandarin, Hindi, Punjabi or Malayalam.
Resources
Meet the diverse and dynamic team of compensation lawyers and supporting staff that have made this all happen below. Our multi-lingual team can discuss your claims in Arabic, Assyrian, Turkish, Greek, Italian, French, Serbian, Croatian, Armenian, Mandarin, Hindi, Punjabi or Malayalam.

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