The duty of care and the liability for defective products

Abstract

In the context of consumer relations, and specifically in terms of damage caused by defective products due to their accidental use, it is necessary to investigate the basis of the juridical consumer protection. It is assumed that such origin is the duty of care, whose enforcement can be very useful, particularly in those cases in which there is jurisprudential or doctrinal divergence, as it is the case in liability for development risks. Thus, this paper discusses the content and the scope of the term “defective”, based on the premise that the goal of the established responsibility (based on duty of care) is consumer protection.