Halloween is supposed to be a time of celebration for most children.  Trick or treating and scary stories has become a national pastime during this time of year.  However many of the costumes purchased by parents for their children are defectively produced leading to a high risk of serious injuries and death.  If you or your child has suffered injuries due to a dangerous Halloween costume may have a claim against the producers of the costume as well as the distributors of the dangerous clothing including the store the item in question was purchased from.

There are numerous types of defectively designed clothing and Halloween costumes. Some of the most frequent are as follows:

• Lack of Flame Retardant Material:  Use of highly flammable fabrics and other material in the making of the costume
• Placement of buttons and other small objects on the costume which can pose a dangerous choking hazard
• Strangulation hazards: Strings, Ropes and other material that can hang from costumes leading to strangulation and suffocation
• Dangerously Long Costumes which drag to the ground leading to slip and fall hazards
• Dangerous chemicals and material in clothing – leading to inhalation and lung damages and the onset of upper respiratory diseases
• Suffocation risks form defectively designed Halloween masks

How to Prove a Defective Product Claim in Court – Winning a Defective Costume Lawsuit

There are generally three ways to prove the existence of a defective costume.  (1) Design Defect (2) Manufacturing Defect (3) Failure to warn / failure to disclose of danger in labeling of the item.

Manufacturing:  Manufacturer defects occur when there is a flaw in the manufacturing method, which caused the product to be different from what the manufacturer originally intended. The product will be considered defective when it is different from its original design, even though care was exercised to avoid this issue. If there is some type of deviation then a manufacturer defect is considered to exist.

Design: A design defect takes into consideration the overall design of the product. Was the product properly designed? Did the manufacturer have more suitable designs which were less likely to cause harm? Did the manufacturer anticipate the use of the product? If the product is found to be defectively designed then you may be entitled to recovery for injuries sustained.

Failure to Warn:  Failure to warn occurs when the defendant or manufacturer of the product does not warn of known dangers. If the manufacturer does not adequately warn of a known risk then it can be liable for failure to warn. While manufacturers are not required to warn of obvious dangers, the courts apply an objective test to determine knowledge. Would a reasonable person know whether the product was defective or noticed the inherent issue? This is the objective standard test and specific knowledge is not considered. Manufacturers must warn through proper instruction of the various known risks or risks they could have discovered through reasonable discovery.

Common Injuries Resulting from Defectively Designed Halloween Costumes include:

• Serious Burn Injuries
• Trip and Fall injuries
• Broken Wrists and ankles
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Suffocation
• Facial Lacerations
• Broken nose and teeth
• Chemical Burns from exposure to dangerous materials
• Eye injuries leading to loss of eyesight
• Permanent scarring and disfigurement

Defective Clothing Injury Attorney – We Can Help you Get the Compensation You Deserve

In defective product cases is important to build your case.  You should keep all files, receipts, communications, receipts of the purchased item and names.  Do not throw away the costume of clothing in question. This is critical in establishing your case. Often times you may fail to keep important information regarding your case which will eventually limit your ability to recover.

Medical Records: If your child has been injured keep all medical records, witness information and other valuable evidence. This is important in proving liability. Seek proper medical attention for your child’s injuries. Because of their age, they may be able to seek full recovery. Thus it is important to seek immediate medical attention.

Select the correct attorney:  Make sure to work with law firm that deals with product liability cases. Our firm deals with a variety of product liability type cases. We have skilled experts who will identify the defective issue and help us build the case. If you child has been injured while using a stroller contact our firm to see whether you have a case.