PRODUCTS LIABILITY
1) COMMON LAW
HISTORICAL POSITION
- Stems exclusively from Donoghue v Stevenson
- Prior to this, liability for defective products was governed by contract
- No remedy under tort law
- No privity, no recovery
Winterbottom v Wright 1842
Coachman injured when coach broke down. D contractually obliged to
maintain coach.
- No liability as there was no contract
Donoghue v Stevenson
"a manufacturer of products, which he sells in such a form as to show that
he intends them to reach the ultimate consumer in the form in which they
left him with no possibility of intermediate examination, and with the
knowledge that the absence of reasonable care in the preparation and
putting up of the products will result in an injury to the consumers’ life or
property, owes a duty to the consumer to take that reasonable care"
- Producer liable to the ultimate consumer for damage to life or property
MODERN POSITION
• Developed quite significantly
• Broad range of issues
MANUFACTURERS
DvS – café owner could be manufacturer
- Can be other people in the distribution change that can be liable
So, must consider the chain of distribution and the processes
, REPAIRER
• Has he repair caused the damage
• If they have not spotted the defect > is it reasonable to hold them to
this.
• Causation very important here
Power v Bradford Motor Co.
Garage negligently repaired P’s steering wheel and left it in a bad state.
Reasonable to expect them to spot this.
- Repairer = manufacturer
P lost eye after lawnmower ejected a stone due to a negligent repair.
- No liability on repairer because accident due to design defect that
reasonable repair could not have discovered.
INSTALLERS AND ASSEMBLERS
Brown v Cotterill
Headstone fell apart and the mason who erected it was liable to
granddaughter.
- Duty owed to ‘every member of the public’
Unusual > remoteness of damage is quite broad.
Occupiers liability?
SUPPLIERS
Keegan v Owens
Supplier of swing boats owed a duty of care to a person operating boats at a
carnival
RETAILERS
• Duty to purchasers and any person foreseeably injured by the product
• STORAGE and OUTDATED liability.
1) COMMON LAW
HISTORICAL POSITION
- Stems exclusively from Donoghue v Stevenson
- Prior to this, liability for defective products was governed by contract
- No remedy under tort law
- No privity, no recovery
Winterbottom v Wright 1842
Coachman injured when coach broke down. D contractually obliged to
maintain coach.
- No liability as there was no contract
Donoghue v Stevenson
"a manufacturer of products, which he sells in such a form as to show that
he intends them to reach the ultimate consumer in the form in which they
left him with no possibility of intermediate examination, and with the
knowledge that the absence of reasonable care in the preparation and
putting up of the products will result in an injury to the consumers’ life or
property, owes a duty to the consumer to take that reasonable care"
- Producer liable to the ultimate consumer for damage to life or property
MODERN POSITION
• Developed quite significantly
• Broad range of issues
MANUFACTURERS
DvS – café owner could be manufacturer
- Can be other people in the distribution change that can be liable
So, must consider the chain of distribution and the processes
, REPAIRER
• Has he repair caused the damage
• If they have not spotted the defect > is it reasonable to hold them to
this.
• Causation very important here
Power v Bradford Motor Co.
Garage negligently repaired P’s steering wheel and left it in a bad state.
Reasonable to expect them to spot this.
- Repairer = manufacturer
P lost eye after lawnmower ejected a stone due to a negligent repair.
- No liability on repairer because accident due to design defect that
reasonable repair could not have discovered.
INSTALLERS AND ASSEMBLERS
Brown v Cotterill
Headstone fell apart and the mason who erected it was liable to
granddaughter.
- Duty owed to ‘every member of the public’
Unusual > remoteness of damage is quite broad.
Occupiers liability?
SUPPLIERS
Keegan v Owens
Supplier of swing boats owed a duty of care to a person operating boats at a
carnival
RETAILERS
• Duty to purchasers and any person foreseeably injured by the product
• STORAGE and OUTDATED liability.
