Corporations are far from pe🌳rfect. The majority seek to provide their customers with high-quality products that work as they should. However, despite their best intentions, corporations ﷽make mistakes, large and small.

Some of these mistakes have led companies to release faulty products into the market. These products might be automobiles with hidden problems, healthcare products with broken packaging🥀, and products with other issues that put the customer in harm's way.

It can be detrimental to business when a company releases a defective product. The fallout can hurt sales, which may threaten the existence of the company. It can also damage a company's 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:brand image, which can be hard, and even impossible, to repair. If a consumer loses 🅰trust in a 🐠company, they may spend their money elsewhere.

It is for these reasons that a company must manage any and all product problems efficiently and properly. This can involve product recalls, customer reimbursemeღnts, or any other action that will address the issue from a public relations standpoint in a time of crisis.

Yeꦦt, despite corrective measures, companies can still be sued and face product liabili💃ty claims that may end up costing the company dearly.

Here is a sampling of some of the biggest product liability lawsui🌜ts that U.S. corporations have faced.

1. Philip Morris: Tobacco Products

In 2002, Philip Morris, now known as Altria Group Inc. (MO), faced charges in a suit filed by a woman who had lung cancer. She claimed that smoking cigarettes had caused her illness and that her tobacco addiction resulted from the tobacco company's failure to warn her of the risks ☂of smoking.

The company was ordered to pay punitive damages of a whopping $28 billion and $850,000 in 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:compensatory damages. Philip Morris appealed the case and nine years later the amount was reduced to $28 million.

2. General Motors Co.: Automobile Parts

In March 2008, GM faced a product liability suit that claimed a damaging chemical was used in its Dex-Cool coolant, which caused leaks and engine damage. A 澳洲幸运5开奖号码历史查询:class-action suit was filed on behalf of about 35 million G𒊎M customers for a🧸pproximately $150 million.

The customers who filed the suit ended up receiving individual payments in the range of $50 to $800.

3. Dow Corning: Silicone Breast Implants

In 1998, Dow Corning, a joint venture of The Dow Chemical Co. (DOW) and Corning Inc. (GLW), reached a settlement 🍃in which it agreed to pay $3.2 billion as part of a class-action suit filed by customers who claimed that their silicone breast implants 🤡were rupturing and causing injury, bodily damage, and scleroderma.

Each woman would receive between $12,000 to $60,000. The company would also pay $5,000 to women wishing to remove their implants and $25,000 to women whose implants had ruptured.

4. General Motors Co.: Automobile Parts

In August 1999, General Motors faced a personal injury and product liability lawsuit claim🍎ing that explosions related to a faulty gas tank on its 1979 Chevrolet Malibu severely burned six individuals when their cars were hit from the rear. The plaintiffs sued for $4.9 bil✃lion in punitive damages.

The victims were able to present evidence that showed GM knew of the problem but did nothing to fix it because of the associated costs.

5. Owens Corning: Asbestos Building Materials

In December 1998, Owens Corning Corp. (OC) agreed to pay $1.2 billion to settle asbestos-related product liability 💝lawsuits claiming that its asbestos building materials caused mesothelioma cancer and death. There were 176,000 individuals involved in this product liability case.

This lawsuit eventually grew to include 237,000 claims. Owens Corning stated that it could not afford the debt and filed for bankruptcy.

The Bottom Line

Product liability suits are brought by plaintiffs in instances where products have caused harm to customers who purchased them or other users of the products. A corpor🏅ation may have no intention of causing harm. Nonetheless, it can end up as a defeꦬndant in a product liability case if harm occurs.

Five of the l🐻argest product liability cases in the U.S. included as defendants the corporations Altria Group (the former Philip Morris), General Motors, Dow Corning, and Owens Corning.