Prohibitive cost of product liability protection

Nature

The producer, importer or supplier of a product passes on to the consumer the high cost of protecting himself against litigation for damage cause by a defective product. Legal costs include insurance and fees for lawyers. In the USA, awards by courts for injury has risen at an exorbitant rate. Defensive measures increase the cost of a product. Additional and unnecessary medical tests might be conducted to protect against medical malpractice suits. Industries may be made internationally uncompetitive because of these increased costs.

Claim

There is a theory of product liability in which the misuse of a product, even when it is not defective, becomes the pretext for a damage claim. Items manufactured in compliance with every safety law, accompanied by careful warnings against misuse, nonetheless become subjects of litigation.