Liability for an industrial machinery accident may extend beyond your employer. If a defective safety guard caused your injury, you may have a third-party product liability claim against the manufacturer or equipment seller, or a negligence claim against an outside contractor.
Safety guards should keep you away from dangerous moving parts. When that protection fails, you may face surgery and lasting limits on your ability to work. Identifying who is responsible requires looking at how the machine was built and what happened to it before your accident.
Who May Be Liable for a Defective Safety Guard?
Several businesses may have a role in getting industrial machinery onto a factory floor and keeping it operational. Depending on the evidence, responsible parties may include:
- Manufacturers: The machine or guard may have an unsafe design or a defect introduced during production.
- Distributors and sellers: Companies that sold defective equipment may face product liability claims even if they did not manufacture it.
- Outside maintenance contractors: A service company may damage a guard, install it incorrectly, or leave a safety mechanism disconnected after repairs.
An outside company responsible for designing or integrating equipment may also bear responsibility if its work created the danger. We investigate each company’s involvement to determine which claims the evidence supports.
When Does a Safety Guard Defect Support a Claim?
A guard does not have to break to be defective. A barrier may leave an opening large enough for your hand to reach a blade. A defective interlock may allow equipment to keep running when its protective door opens.
Product liability claims generally involve a design defect, manufacturing defect, or inadequate warnings and instructions. For example, a guard may match its intended design but still fail to protect operators during reasonably foreseeable use. In another case, a production error may cause one guard to detach unexpectedly.
A missing guard also warrants investigation. Was the machine supplied without necessary protection, or did someone remove it later? The answer can change who is responsible. We must connect the defect or careless conduct to your injury, rather than relying solely on the fact that an accident happened.
How Is a Product Liability Claim Different From Workers’ Compensation?
Workers’ compensation generally provides benefits for a work-related injury without requiring you to prove that your employer was negligent. Those benefits may include medical treatment and payments for qualifying disability.
A third-party claim seeks compensation from someone other than your employer whose defective product or negligence caused your injury. You may be able to pursue that claim while receiving workers’ compensation benefits. A successful lawsuit may include damages for pain and suffering, which workers’ compensation does not provide.
The claims must be coordinated because a workers’ compensation insurer may have reimbursement rights against a third-party recovery.
Claims directly against an employer are generally restricted. California has a narrow exception for certain power press injuries involving an employer’s knowing removal or failure to install a required guard. Strict statutory conditions apply, so a missing guard alone does not establish that exception.
What Evidence Helps Establish Liability?
The machine’s condition immediately after the accident can help show why the guard failed. Repairs or replacement may make that condition harder to reconstruct.
After getting medical care and reporting your injury, preserve information you can safely and lawfully obtain, including:
- Photographs showing the machine and its guard.
- The equipment’s model and serial number.
- Witness names and contact information.
- Messages or reports about earlier safety concerns.
Maintenance records may reveal when a guard was altered or whether problems went unresolved. California regulations require applicable point-of-operation guards to be properly adjusted and maintained, making the equipment’s service history relevant to the investigation.
Avoid handling or testing the damaged equipment yourself. We can help seek preservation of the machine and arrange an appropriate inspection.
Take Action Before Equipment Evidence Changes
At Casper, Meadows, Schwartz & Cook, we represent people injured in industrial accidents throughout Walnut Creek and the Bay Area. We can investigate the equipment’s history and work with qualified engineers to determine how a safety guard failed. Our attorneys also evaluate potential claims against manufacturers and other third parties.
If a defective safety guard caused your injury, contact us for a free case evaluation. Let us review what happened and help you pursue the compensation available under California law.