Chatter, Clatter, and Blinks: Defective Car Alerts and the Role of Technological Advances in Design Defect/failure to Warn Cases

By: James Forrest McKell Jr.

Car owners are familiar with the warning lights on the dashboard and the beeping sound reminding them to use their seatbelt. But, neither the legislature nor courts have concretely defined the legal nature of these alerts. This iBrief will analyze when a deficient alert becomes a defective product tort claim and determine the appropriate theory under which such claims should be brought.

Cite: 2010 Duke L. & Tech. Rev. 010