How does a plaintiff establish the “breach of warranty” in a product liability case?
In a product liability case, a plaintiff must prove that the defendant breached a warranty attached to the product. A warranty is an obligation to stand behind the product and provide a certain level of quality and safety. In Washington, there are two main types of warranties involved in product liability cases: implied and express. An implied warranty is an unwritten guarantee made by the seller that the product will meet certain standards of quality and safety. This type of warranty does not require that the seller specify the warranty in writing. In products liability cases, Washington courts presume an implied warranty exists for products that are used for personal, family, or household purposes. An express warranty is a written guarantee made by the seller. To establish a breach of express warranty, the plaintiff must prove that the seller either made a written promise to provide a specific level of quality or safety or that they represented that the product was fit for a particular use. To establish a breach of either implied or express warranty, the plaintiff must also prove that the product failed to meet the warranty requirements, caused harm, and that the harm was foreseeable. If the plaintiff can prove that the defendant breached a warranty, they may be able to recover damages in a product liability lawsuit.
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