When Online Marketplaces Sell Dangerous Products: Can Amazon Be Held Liable In Florida?
Online shopping is now an integral part of our daily lives. There are millions of online shoppers who buy various products, such as household items, electronic goods, toys, and many other products, from online retail websites such as Amazon on a daily basis. However, this new phenomenon in the retail world has given birth to an interesting legal issue. A recent development in an Amazon case involving the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has given us insight into a key legal issue.
The rise of third-party sellers
One of the reasons that product liability cases have become more complicated in recent years is due to the rise of third-party sellers on the Amazon marketplace. Indeed, a large percentage of the products that are sold on the Amazon marketplace are not actually sold by Amazon itself. Instead, third-party sellers place their products up for sale on the platform and allow Amazon to facilitate payments or even storage of the products in their warehouses.
For a number of years, Amazon has taken the position that it is simply a marketplace or a middleman, and that it is not a seller at all. As such, it argues that the liability for defective products should fall on the actual manufacturer or third-party seller who put the product up for sale in the first place. However, many consumers who have been injured by defective products found that it was difficult to identify the seller in the first place, as they were often located overseas.
A changing legal landscape
Recently, the courts and regulators have begun to test the assumption that Amazon is simply a neutral platform. In some cases, the courts have been asked to assess the company’s role in storing products, shipping products, marketing products, and processing payments for products sold through the platform.
In more recent cases, the CPSC has ruled that Amazon can be considered a distributor of products under the federal product safety laws in cases involving defective or hazardous products sold through third-party vendors on the site.
The rationale behind the decision is simple: Amazon is often a significant player in the supply chain. By storing products and processing payments, Amazon is acting like a retailer rather than simply a marketplace.
How do Florida’s product liability rules apply?
In Florida, injured consumers can hold various players in the distribution chain accountable for injuries sustained due to dangerous or defective products. These players include manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers, and retailers. If a product is defective and causes injury to a consumer, several players can be held liable depending on their role in bringing that product to market.
Product liability in Florida can occur in three different ways:
- Design defects occur when a product is inherently dangerous.
- Manufacturing defects occur when there is an error in production.
- Failure to warn occurs when consumers are not warned about a product.
In Florida, if a product being sold via an online marketplace causes injury to a consumer, courts can potentially look at whether the online platform is a seller or distributor. When a company is involved in marketing, storing, and delivering a product, it can be held liable when the product is dangerous or defective.
Talk to a Florida Product Liability Lawyer Today
Halpern, Santos & Pinkert represent the interests of Florida residents who have been injured by a dangerous or defective consumer product. Call our Florida personal injury lawyers today to schedule an appointment, and we can begin preparing your case right away.
