Product liability claim involving child burn victim

Our client was a young child when her hair caught fire during the application of a lice treatment product, leaving her with serious burns. The product had been manufactured and placed on the market by the defendant manufacturer. The injuries were severe: she needed a six-week stay in the National Burns Unit and four surgeries, including skin grafting, to treat the extent of the burns she had sustained.

For a young child and her family, the experience was traumatic, and the physical and psychological consequences were significant. Her family instructed Diane Treanor at Coleman Legal to investigate what had happened and to advise on a product liability claim against the manufacturer.

How we supported our client through the process

Diane Treanor assessed the basis of the claim under the Liability for Defective Products Act 1991, which brings the EU Product Liability Directive into Irish law and imposes strict liability on the manufacturers of defective products that cause personal injury. Under that framework, it was not necessary to establish that the manufacturer had been negligent; it was enough to show that the product was defective, that the defect caused the injuries, and that the losses claimed followed from them.

Independent expert evidence was instructed from two specialists:

  • A consultant plastic and reconstructive surgeon assessed the nature and extent of the burns, the surgical interventions required, including the skin grafting procedures, the outcome of those procedures, and the long-term prognosis for our client.
  • A consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist assessed the psychological impact of the injury on our client and the trauma she had experienced as a young child as a result of the incident and its aftermath.

Because our client was a minor at the time of the injury, the Statute of Limitations did not begin to run against her until she reached adulthood. Proceedings were prepared and conducted on her behalf, with the full range of her losses, physical, surgical and psychological, set out in the evidence presented.

Outcome and resolution

A confidential settlement was reached without admission of liability by the defendant manufacturer, resolving the matter for our client. Diane Treanor of Coleman Legal represented our client throughout.