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How to Find Out if a Product has been Recalled

Written by AskTheLawyers.com™

How to Find Out if a Product has been Recalled

Written by AskTheLawyers.com™

AskTheLawyers™

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When someone is injured or falls ill due to a defective product, it is imperative that the product be reported, investigated, and recalled as necessary to protect others from the same kind of suffering. If you or a loved one were injured by a product you suspect to be defective, it’s a good idea to check if it has already been recalled.

If the product has been recalled, you may be eligible to file a product liability claim against the party that sold it to you after the recall date in order to cover damages such as medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, and more. If the product has not been recalled, you may have a claim against the manufacturer, and a recall investigation should begin. To learn more about filing a product liability claim or for help investigating whether a product has been recalled, reach out to a product liability attorney.

There are several ways to check if a product has been recalled, including the following:

  • Check with the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC): If you believe a consumer product you purchased or own may be defective or unsafe, check here to see if it has already been recalled or if any safety warnings have been issued regarding it.
  • Check with Recalls.gov: This is one place to check if you suspect an unsafe consumer product, vehicle, boat, foot, medicine, cosmetic, or environmental product is recalled.
  • Check with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA): If you think a vehicle or vehicle part may be defective, check here to see if it has already been recalled.
  • Check with the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS): If you think a meat, sausage, poultry, or processed egg product may be unsafe, check here to see if it has been recalled.
  • Check with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA): If you think a non-meat food product, medicine, medical device, cosmetic, veterinary, pet, biologic, or radiation-emitting product may be unsafe, check here to see if it has been recalled.
  • Check with Foodsafety.gov: This is another place to check if you think a food product may be defective or unsafe.

There are a few different options for reporting safety concerns, including:

  • Foodsafety.gov: To make a complaint about an unsafe food product including pet food and food sold in restaurants, submit your experience to the correct agency from this website.
  • National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA): To make a complaint about an unsafe vehicle or vehicle accessory, submit your experience here.
  • SaferProducts.gov: To make a complaint about an unsafe consumer product, submit your experience here.

Do not throw away the defective or recalled product.

If you or a loved one have been injured by a potentially defective or recalled product, it is important to retain possession of that product. If you have already turned the product into the CPSC, you may request to have it returned to you. In the event that you decide to file a product liability claim against the negligent party, the product in addition to any packaging or instructional material that accompanied it will be a key piece of evidence in your lawsuit.

To learn more about how to find out if a product has been recalled, or for help filing a product liability claim, contact a product liability attorney.

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