If you’ve spent time maintaining your yard in the fall months, you’re likely very familiar with leaf blowers, mowers, and other pieces of yard-specific machinery. Since we use these machines regularly, we forget that they’re intricate works of engineering with hundreds of moving parts. We trust them to do their job well and safely. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case.
When these pieces of equipment are defective, they can inflict a lot of pain and suffering. If one of your pieces of yard equipment has failed to perform as you expected, it’s time to seek the compensation you deserve.
Fall Must-Have Power Tools – And The Ways That They Can Fail
When cleaning up your yard pre-winter, you’ll likely be working with rakes, wheelbarrows, and yard waste bags, in addition to power tools.
Popular power tools that many IL homeowners rev up in the fall include:
• Mowers: As long as there’s still grass on your lawn, it will need trimming. A power motor can get the job done quickly and efficiently.
• Leaf blowers: It’s called ‘fall’ for a reason: ’Tis the season for trees to lose their leaves. All of that dead foliage can pile up and make moving around your property difficult. Raking it all by hand can take too much time and energy, so a powerful leaf blower that moves them for you easily is well worth the investment.
The convenience these machines confer, however, does not mask the damage they can do when defective. Each has powerful motors; a mower has sharp blades; and if eitherbreaks at the wrong time, they can cause serious harm. The Consumer Product Safety Commission released a report in 2015 that revealed over 82,000 cases wherein people suffered injuries relating to improperly used or unsafe mowers. Consumer Reports notes that these yard tools annually cause 87,600 ER visits and as many as 77 deaths.
Some common flaws in manufactured products that can lead to undue harm include:
• Defects in the design of the leaf blower or lawnmower
• Manufacturing defects
• Insufficient or improper warning labels
• Easily-breakable parts
• Lack of sufficient instructions
• Defective blades, fuel systems, or anti-rollover protections for riding lawn mowers
If a product you have purchased displays any of these or other defects, and especially if any said defects have caused you or a loved one harm, you need to hold the manufacturer accountable. One way to do so is by filing a product liability claim. This type of claim allows victims to fight for compensation to cover injuries and costs associated with a defective product.
These types of claims generally fall into one of three categories:
• Manufacturing defects
• Failure to warn appropriately
• Design defects
Demonstrating Responsibility for a Defective Product in Illinois
According to Illinois law, there is strict liability for product liability cases. This is the standard “without regard to traditional questions of privity, fault, or the user’s ordinary negligence.”
This means that to fight for compensation in strict product liability, you will need to prove that the manufactured product caused your injury, that the condition the product caused was unreasonably dangerous, and that the specific cause, defect, or lack of appropriate warning existed when the product left the manufacturer.
Importantly, any party that helps put the product on the market can be liable under this strict definition, including the manufacturer, supplier, wholesaler, and retailer. Your legal team can help you build a strong case against these entities to work towards fair compensation for your suffering.
Smart, Hard-Working Lawyers Ready to Assist You with the Fight Ahead
Whether you’re seeking compensation for lost income, pain, current and future medical expenses, or property damage, you’ll need the best legal team available to help you hold a power tool manufacturer responsible for the dangers of their yard equipment. Some companies may respond to your claim by attempting to offer you a small settlement, but that may not be enough to cover your costs.
At Cullotta Bravo Group, we’ve defended companies and community members alike, fighting aggressively in our client’s best interests for over 30 years.
If you were injured by defective yard equipment in Chicagoland, Aurora, or DuPage County, you need a dedicated Illinois personal injury lawyer’s experience and expertise. Contact us today at 630-898-7800 to schedule your free initial consultation.
