Claims based on product liability are likely to be some of the most common claims filed in front of the courts of the province of Ontario. This is mainly due to the fact that there is a lot of legislation which gives full merit to people who have suffered from damages caused by product malfunction and the procedure is clear and transparent but it’s also quite complicated as you might have to undergo a few steps prior to filing your case.
Manufacturer or retailer
The first thing that you should consider is whether or not the defective product was purchased from a retailer or from the manufacturer himself as this leads to two completely different hypotheses. In any case you have to know if your product has a warranty or not because this is also going to impact the outcome of the event. If it has a warranty you can claim your damages directly from the manufacturer, provided he’s the one giving the warranty. It’s also quite common for the retailer to issue warranties even though he isn’t the one who manufactured the product. If that’s the case, you should seek your compensation from him. Your lawyer will have to ensure that your rights are protected. Additionally, you will need to ensure that your lawyer is conversant with the case details.
Sale of Goods Act
However, if there is no warranty, you shouldn’t be too concerned or worried about not getting compensated for the damages that you had to incur as a result of the malfunctioning of the product. The Sale of Goods Act which is in full force in the province of Ontario, the retailer has three dully obligations that have to be properly executed. The first one is that he has to sell products which are suitable for their purpose. This means that they have to be free of any defects which may render them unfit for usage as this is going to be a direct breach of this particular duty. The second duty comes into the picture if you’ve purchased the product based on a sample. If that’s the case, the quality of the product that you get has to directly correspond to the quality of the sample that you’ve been shown or tested. In any case, any differences give you grounds for seeking compensation.
The third and last duty is that if the retailer is selling items which are based on samples such as a catalogue, for instance, these items have to be fit to be properly sold. If you have bought a product which isn’t covered by any sort of warranty and this product turns out to be faulty, you have the full right to seek reparations under the Sale of Goods Act in Ontario. However, it’s highly advisable that you seek the professional consult of a lawyer who is practicing in this particular area as the matter can get quite complicated.
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