法律英语词汇“product liability”的翻译、意思、用法、释义-法律词典

product liability
The liability of manufacturers and other persons for defective products. Under the Consumer Protection Act 1987, passed to conform with the requirements of European law, the producer of a defective product that causes death or personal injury or damage to property is strictly liable for the damage. A claim may only be made for damage to property, other than to itself, if the property was for private use or consumption and the value of the damage caused exceeds £275. A product is defined to include any goods or electricity, including component parts, raw materials, and agricultural products. A product is defective if its safety is not such as persons generally are entitled to expect. The persons liable for a defective product are:

• the producer (i.e. the manufacturer, including producers of component parts and raw materials);

• a person who holds himself out to be producer by putting his name or trade mark on the product;

• a person who imports the product into the European Union;

• a supplier who fails, when reasonably requested to do so by the person injured, to identify the producer or importer of the product.

There are several defences to liability under the Act, for example contributory negligence; that the defect is attributable to compliance with a requirement imposed by law; that the defendant did not supply the product or did not supply it in the course of business; that the defect did not exist at the relevant time; and that the state of scientific and technical knowledge at the relevant time was not such that a producer of such products could be expected to have discovered the defect. Actions must be started within three years from the date when the claimant first had a cause of action or (if later) first knew or should have known the material facts, but not later than ten years from when the product was put into circulation. Liability under the Act may not be excluded by any contract or notice.

Compensation for defective products can also be obtained under the general principles of contract and tort. The purchaser of a defective product may sue the seller for breach of contract in failing to supply a product that conforms to the contract (including its implied conditions). An action in tort can be brought by anyone whose person or property is damaged by a defective product against the person whose negligence caused the damage; this person may be the manufacturer or someone else, such as a distributor or a repairer.

Regulations establishing a new product-safety regime, based on the requirements of the EU’s General Product Safety Directive, entered into force in the UK in October 2005. They apply to new and second-hand consumer products and place general duty on all suppliers of consumer goods to supply products that are safe for normal or reasonably foreseeable use.