Quality Liability of Products in China
Digest:
Recently the product quality issues in China have caused great attentions worldwide. The industries for toys, clothes, foods, tires, and pharmacy, etc. have been considered as products which need to be controlled and examined strictly when being imported. The direct result is that foreigners are doubtful about whether China has a complete and effective system of quality control and product liability, and whether the products made in china need to obey some specific standards and rules. This article will give the explanation to those questions through the analysis of one detailed case.
Facts:
There is a pending case in Allen & John Law Firm in China. Party A: staff of one large enterprise of retail industry. Party B: domestic manufacturer of beverages. The event happened in 2006. The fruit juice made by party B was required to be returned by consumers. Party A and staff of Party B handled the related procedures according to the usual practice, and gave the returned products back to Party B for disposal. Just when Party A and staff of Party B checked the goods, suddenly, the bottle exploded and the cover of the bottle hit Party A’s right eye. The injured eye was swollen and ached at once. After being diagnosed by doctor, the eyeball was diagnosed as injured which would cause a bad influence to his eyesight. At last, Party A was determined by the relevant government department to be injured and disabled.
Legal Issues:
- Whether the Chinese domestic producer is liable for the product quality.
- Which warranty responsibilities for product quality shall be assumed by the producer.
- When the warranty responsibilities for product quality shall start to be assumed according to related Chinese law.
- The conditions of assuming the injury responsibility for product quality.
- Once the accident happens, whether there is legal grounds for making a claim for the injury in China.
- The limitation of subject matter for the claim for the responsibility of product quality.
- The substitute responsibility between producer and seller.
Analysis: