legal question about product recalls and liability

[crypticlogin]

This is more my curiousity than anything else, but consider the situation:

A company put out a product and some time down the road, they find it's faulty or otherwise worthy of being recalled. So they put out a voluntary recall with the appropriate agencies and consumer groups, send out individual notices, and since the company is big / famous / rich enough to do so, gets a blurb on national news for maximum exposure. Now later on a consumer, who didn't take part in the recall, is injured because the product failed in exactly the way the recall was supposed to prevent.

So my question is: So how much of the liability rests with the consumer and how much with the company? And (say) if the consumer admitted they knew about the recall but ignored it, would the company still be open to a lawsuit from the consumer? Is there *any* way that the company isn't a target?


(It's pitiful what I don't know about the legal system...)

edit: Thanks for the replies everyone. Curiousity satisfied!
(not posting to prevent from bumping)

 

[HappyPuppy]

In your scenario, the consumer is 100% responsible. The company/manufacturer will still be sued by the morons and, in some cases, win.

What is pitiful is our legal system that allows this crap.

 

[xuanman]

my understanding under your fact scenario is that the consumer is out of luck.

 

[LethalWolfe]

Assuming a reasonable amount of time has past for the product to be returned/repaired then the consumer is SOL for not getting it done. Example: I just got a recall notice for the starter (it might start a car fire) in my car yesterday. If I started the car up tomorrow to take it to the dealer and it burst up in flames GM would owe me a new car. If I drove it around for 2 months and it burst into flames I'm SOL for being dumb.


Lethal

 

[Frenchie]

It depends upon the jurisdiction. Some states use a comparative negligence standard while others use a contributory standard. In the contrib. states, since the consumer is partially at fault for ignoring the recall, he will be barred from winning. In the compar. states, the consumers award will be reduced by his percentage of negligence (ie 100,000 award, he is 30% negl, so gets a 70k award). Also, in the compar. states, if the consumer is 50% or more negl, he may be barred depending upon whether it is a pure or modified comparative negl jurisdiction.