How a Thumb Might (or Might Not) Cost a Car Manufacturer $13.5 Million

In 2016, 61-year-old software engineer Godwin Boateng was waiting for a friend right outside the driver's side of his BMW X5. While waiting, Boateng was resting his hand idly on the door panel of this BMW X5, which was equipped with a soft closing automatic door (SCAD) sensor, which causes the doors to close automatically. Unfortunately for Boateng, the door clamped shut on his hand, which was hard enough to chop his right thumb off.

In the same year, Boateng sued BMW for damages. Losing a thumb is more than just losing a small appendage, it also had a significant impact on the quality of life of Boateng. Losing his thumb not only made simple tasks such as buttoning a shirt or tying shoelaces difficult and painful, it also affected his work. 

Product Liability

The case is one that falls under product liability. In order to understand it better, it's important to know the basic principles associated with product liability cases. There are three general types of product liability defects:

Design defects, which are defects associated with poor product design and a lack of testing and research. This means that all units are defective and dangerous.

Manufacturing defects, which are defects associated with good product design, but an error in manufacturing. This means that only the unit/s produced through faulty manufacturing are defective and dangerous. 

Marketing defects, which are defects associated with the manufacturer's failure to include sufficient product warnings and instructions that would have helped consumers avoid injuries.

It's also important to understand that some cases can become both a personal injury case and a product liability case. Boateng's case is a good example of this.

The claimant's injury was not only caused by a negligent act by the part of the defendant, but the injury was also (supposedly) caused by a defect in the defendant's product. The rationale behind why liability seems to be stricter on manufacturers is that they have the unwritten obligation to produce safe and reliable products for their consumers.

Product liability cases are also governed by the strict liability doctrine, which states that any product sold is covered by an unexpressed warranty. This means that the claimant only needs to prove that the product was defective for liability to take hold.

In the case of Boateng, the BMW X5's SCAD feature cannot be classified as a design defect, nor a manufacturing defect because the feature worked as intended. - it closed the doors of the car. The only angle of liability here is that BMW failed to include warnings that tell consumers to keep the door panel free of any obstruction.

While this can be considered common sense, it's still the manufacturer's duty to warn their consumers of any dangers associated with their products. The same principle is what forms the basis of why Tide Pods now have a warning in their package after an internet trend saw people eating Tide Pods.

The case is still in progress and there has yet to be a final decision made. It's unclear whether Boateng's claim will cost BMW $13.5 million, but what's clear is that if you sustain any car-related injuries, you should always consult with lawyers like the ones from Gibson Hill Personal Injury to help you secure compensation. 

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