Child Car Seat Defects In Syracuse, New York

Jed Dietrich, Esq., Recognized as a Best Lawyer in America and an America’s Top 100 Personal Injury Attorney, Has Spent Decades Fighting for the Rights of New York Families. If Your Child Has Been Injured in a Syracuse Accident Involving a Defective Child Car Seat, You Deserve Aggressive, Effective Representation and an Attorney Willing to Fight for Your Child’s Right to a Fair Recovery.

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Few parents take any chances when it comes to their children’s safety, but families cannot always get all the information they need to make the best decision about booster seats. Even if you have done your research and read through reviews, manufacturers sometimes make mistakes that escape detection until they result in real-world consequences, consequences that far too often end in tragedy, leaving kids injured, disabled, or worse.

Although companies sometimes try to offload blame onto parents for failing to follow installation directions, you do not have to accept excuses in place of a fair recovery. Since our founding in 2005, the Dietrich Law Firm P.C. has fought to protect the rights of families in Syracuse and across the region. Our experienced team of product liability lawyers has helped our clients secure more than $250 million in damages, money that they have used to restore their financial independence and ensure that their children have every opportunity to obtain the best possible outcome after being injured in a worst-case scenario.

We could help you, too. Please send us a message online or call us at 1-866-529-5334 to speak to an attorney and schedule your free consultation as soon as possible.

Child Car Seats: Understanding The Limitations In State Law and Federal Standards New York Law On Child Safety Seats And Child Restraint Systems

Almost every state has laws regulating the proper use of seatbelts, booster seats, and child restraint systems. In New York, requirements for children are set by age. They include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. All children under the age of 2 must travel in rear-facing car seats;
2. All children under the age of 4 must travel in child safety seats; and
3. All children under the age of 8 must travel in some form of approved child restraint system.

Parents are typically permitted to install child safety seats and restraint systems by themselves or with the help of a mechanic. The New York Department of Transportation also offers free inspections at “safety stations” located throughout the state. These inspections are not mandatory, but they can help identify installation-related problems.

Why Federal Standards Cannot Always Keep Kids Safe

Few parents would purchase a booster seat or restraint system for their child if they had reason to believe it might be unsafe. Manufacturers know this and will often emphasize protective features in their marketing materials, claiming that their products either meet or exceed “federal standards.”

However, federal standards are anything but foolproof.

In New York, a child safety seat is only legal if it meets the requirements established by Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 213. This rule requires manufacturers to subject seats, harnesses, and infant carriers to a range of tests, all designed to ensure that these devices are tamperproof and capable of providing protection under simulated crash conditions.

However, companies can exercise significant discretion in how they conduct, run, and interpret the results of crash tests. Many products do not account for differences in children’s weight and size. They may not be designed to withstand certain types of collisions, including rollover accidents and crashes that occur at speeds above 30 miles per hour.

Filing A Defective Child Car Seat Lawsuit: What Parents Need To Know Before Going To Court

In New York, parents whose children have been injured by defective safety devices have the option of filing a product liability lawsuit against the manufacturer. Successful claims give families the chance to obtain compensation for their child’s injuries, money that can be used to pay down medical debt, replace lost income from work, and afford high-quality care.

However, establishing liability can be a challenging task. To secure a settlement or win a court-ordered award, you will likely have to prove the following:

1. The Booster Seat, Harness, or Restraint System Was Defective

A defect is any form of imperfection that prevents a product from fulfilling its function or being used as intended. Common types of child safety seat defects include:

1. Defective buckles, straps, and latches;
2. Defective or weak carry handles;
3. Defective, weak, or incompatible base units;
4. Poor-quality or inadequate shell materials; and
5. Poor-quality or inadequate shell padding.

However, even if a booster seat or restraint system was defective, companies can only be held liable for certain types of defects. These include, but are not limited to, the following:

1. Manufacturing Defects: A manufacturing defect is a defect that occurs during production. Manufacturing defects can affect a single product or every product made in a particular factory or facility.
2. Design Defects: A design defect is caused by an error in a product’s design or engineering. Design defects typically indicate that every unit in an entire line of products is unsafe.

2. The Manufacturer or Company Is Liable for Your Child’s Injuries

A proper legal theory must underlie product liability claims.

Syracuse product liability lawyers will usually file booster seat claims in accordance with any of the two following theories:

1. Strict liability, which holds that a product was defective and that the defect caused the product to have unreasonably dangerous characteristics. Most strict liability claims do not require proving that the manufacturer was aware of the defect.
2. Negligence, which is typically employed when the defendant did not do its due diligence in manufacturing, designing, or advertising a product.

Manufacturers can also be held liable for breaches of warranty if their product failed to perform as expected under the conditions for which it was rated.

3. The Defect Caused Your Child’s Injuries

The manufacturer or retailer of a defective safety device is only liable for the defect if the defect was a direct cause of your child’s injuries.

4. Your Family Incurred Damages as a Result of the Accident

New York courts can only award compensation in defective child car seat claims if the accident caused the child or their family to suffer damages. Depending on the circumstances of your case, damages could include:

1. The money you have already spent on medical care;
2. The money you will need to pay for your child’s anticipated treatment;
3. The costs of physical rehabilitation or other long-term care;
4. The income you have lost from work as a result of having to assist in your child’s recovery; and
5. Your child’s pain and suffering, mental anguish, or diminished future opportunities.

State law does not limit or otherwise cap damages in most product liability claims. However, New York does have strict statutes of limitations. If you wait too long to contact an attorney, your family and your child could lose your right to a fair recovery.

Do not miss your opportunity to obtain justice: please send a message to the Dietrich Law Firm P.C. online or call us at 1-866-529-5334 to speak with a defective child car seat lawyer near Syracuse and schedule your free consultation as soon as possible.

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Call the Dietrich Law Firm P.C. immediately at 1-866-529-5334 so that our aggressive, tenacious, and hardworking personal injury lawyers can fight to obtain the best result for your personal injury claim in Syracuse, New York. We are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and there is never a fee until we WIN for you!

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