When you make a purchase you expect the product to be 100 percent safe to use as intended. Unfortunately, there are times when a product malfunctions, leading to serious injury or death.

While some industries, such as automotive, are more known for defective products than others, this type of problem can arise from almost any item on the market.

The following products have all been tied to product defects in the past:

— Guns or other firearms

— Industrial machinery

— Tires

— Motor vehicles, including cars, motorcycles, and snowmobiles

— Appliances

— Power tools

— Farm equipment

The problem with a defective product is that the user is not typically aware that something is wrong. For example, a problem with a car airbag may not be known until a person is involved in an accident. At this point, it is too late for anything to be done.

There are things consumers can do to avoid defective products, such as becoming familiar with recalls before making a purchase. Even then, as noted above, there is no way of knowing for sure that a product is 100 percent safe.

There are times when a defective product injures a person. There are also times when this is much more serious, killing one or more people as a direct result of the defect.

If a person is injured or a loved one is killed by a defective product, the final step is often a consultation with a personal injury attorney. In some cases, a defective product leads to a class action lawsuit in which many victims are involved.