Defective Products: Understanding Your Rights in Ohio

Written by Jay M. Kelley III in Product Liability on June 2, 2026

Every day, we use hundreds of products. We trust that our cars will stop when we hit the brakes, our coffee makers won’t explode, and our children’s toys are free from choking hazards. We assume that if a product is on a store shelf in Ohio, it has been tested and is safe for our families.

Unfortunately, that is not always true. Every year, thousands of people in Ohio are injured by products that were poorly designed, badly made, or sold without proper warnings. When a company puts profit over safety, the results can be life-changing.

If you have been hurt by a faulty or defective product, you are protected by a part of the law called product liability. This area of law is notoriously difficult, as it often involves taking on massive global corporations and their insurance teams. With 50+ years of experience, we have the resources and the knowledge to hold these manufacturers accountable.

What Is “Strict Liability”?

In most personal injury cases, like a car accident, you have to prove that the other person was “negligent” or careless. Product liability is different. Ohio follows a rule called strict liability.

Under strict liability, you do not have to prove that the manufacturer intentionally caused harm. You only have to prove that the product was defective and that the defect caused your injury. Even if the manufacturer “exercised all possible care” and followed every safety rule, they are still responsible if their product fails and hurts a consumer.

This rule exists because the law believes that the company making the money from the defective product should be the one to pay for the injuries it causes. It shouldn’t be the victim’s job to figure out exactly which employee on an assembly line made a mistake.

The 3 Types of Product Defects

To win a case in Ohio, you must show that the product was defective in one of three specific ways:

1. Design Defects: A design defect means the product was dangerous from the very beginning. Even if it was built perfectly according to the blueprints, the blueprints themselves were flawed. An example would be an SUV that is designed with a center of gravity so high that it flips over during a normal turn.
2. Manufacturing Defects: This happens when the design is safe, but something went wrong during the actual building process. Maybe a bolt wasn’t tightened, or a low-quality batch of plastic was used. In this case, only one specific unit (or a small batch of units) is dangerous, while the rest are fine.
3. Marketing Defects (Failure to Warn): Sometimes a product is designed well and built well, but it is still dangerous if it doesn’t come with the right instructions or warnings. If a medication has a side effect that causes heart attacks, but the company doesn’t tell doctors or patients, that is a marketing defect.

The “10-Year” Statute of Repose

This is the most dangerous rule for consumers in Ohio. Most people know about the Statute of Limitations, which gives you two years from the date of your injury to file a lawsuit. However, Ohio also has a Statute of Repose.

The Statute of Repose says that you cannot sue a manufacturer more than 10 years after the product was first sold. This applies even if you are perfectly careful.

• Example: If you buy a toaster in 2015 and it explodes in 2026, you likely cannot sue the manufacturer in Ohio, because more than 10 years have passed since the product was “placed into the stream of commerce.”

There are very few exceptions to this rule, such as cases involving fraud or certain medical devices. This makes it critical to talk to a lawyer the moment you get hurt so we can check the “birth date” of the defective product that caused your injury.

The “Modified Comparative Fault” Rule

Ohio uses a 51% rule for fault. If the manufacturer can prove that you were more than 50% responsible for your own injury, you may not recover compensation.

The insurance company will try to say you “misused” the product. They might say you ignored the warning labels or used the tool in a way it wasn’t intended. With 50+ years of experience, we know how to fight back against these “victim-blaming” tactics. We work with engineers and safety experts to show that your use of the product was “foreseeable,” even if it wasn’t “perfect.”

4 Critical Steps to Take After an Injury

In a product liability case, the “physical evidence” is one of the most important parts of the case. If you throw away the product, you likely throw away your case.

1. Save the Product: Do not throw it in the trash. Do not try to fix it. Do not send it back to the manufacturer for a “refund.” Put the product, the original box, the instruction manual, and the receipt in a safe place. If it is a large item like a car or a water heater, make sure it is stored somewhere where it won’t be tampered with.
2. Take Photos and Videos: Take high-resolution photos of the product and the scene where you were hurt. If a battery exploded, take photos of the char marks on the floor and your burns.
3. Record the “Numbers”: Find the serial number, model number, and batch number on the product. This helps us track down if there have been other complaints or a formal recall issued by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).
4. Keep Your Medical Records: You must be able to prove that the product—and not something else—caused your injury. Going to the doctor immediately creates a “paper trail” that links the defective product to your physical pain.

Why 50+ Years of Experience Matters

Product liability cases are very expensive to fight. To prove a design defect, we often have to hire independent engineers to build “alternative designs” to show the jury that the product could have been made safer. These experts can cost thousands of dollars.

Small law firms often don’t have the financial resources to go toe-to-toe with companies like Ford, Johnson & Johnson, or Amazon. At our firm, we have spent 50+ years building the resources needed to take these cases all the way to trial. We pay for the experts, the testing, and the investigations upfront. You only pay us back if we win.

We also understand the “Statutory Framework” of the Ohio Products Liability Act (OPLA). This is a complex set of laws that governs every product case in our state. We know how to navigate these rules to maximize your compensation for medical bills, lost wages, and your pain and suffering.

Contact Elk + Elk for Your Free Consultation

If you or a loved one has been injured by a defective product, you do not have to face the manufacturer alone. Contact the experienced product liability attorneys at Elk + Elk today for a free and confidential consultation. We work on a contingency fee basis, which means you pay nothing unless we win your case.

Call 1 (800) ELK-OHIO now and let us put our 50+ years of experience and resources to work for your recovery and peace of mind.

Jay M. Kelley III - Managing Partner

Meet Jay M. Kelley III, a top medical malpractice and catastrophic personal injury attorney in Ohio with over 30 years of experience and a proven track record of securing millions in verdicts and settlements. He leads Elk + Elk’s comprehensive litigation strategy across state, federal, and appellate courts, drawing on a unique background as a former felony prosecutor and hospital defense lawyer. Jay focuses on high-stakes, complex cases, including birth injuries and wrongful death, and is widely recognized by Best Lawyers and ranked among the Super Lawyers Top 10 in Ohio.

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