Proof of Liability with bikes

Frame and Wheel recently read Proof of Facts: Proof of Liability for Design, Manufacture, Distribution or Sale of a Defective Bicycle or Component by Eric M. Larsson. This short booklet, intended for lawyers, is very well written and understandable for the lay person.  It is a terrifying read for anyone who is interested in entering the bike business. Nevertheless, Frame and Wheel feels like that it has benefited from the time spent reading it. Some of the key points are this:

• Liability in the bicycle industry is concurrent or "joint and several". This means that everyone along the supply chain is responsible, from the manufacturer, to the wholesaler and to the retailer, although some of these parties might have greater "fault" than the others.
• An assembler of a bicycle can be considered a manufacturer.
• The idea of imposing "strict liability" on the manufacturer and distributor is intended to make sure that these parties know that they are responsible for producing a safe product. The buck stops with them.
• Federal law requires that instruction manuals be sold with the bike. Presently instruction manuals are on bike company websites. The manufacturer must warn the consumer about the risks involved.
• Anyone who puts out as one's own a product manufactured by another is subject to liability as a manufacturer. 
• Federal law requires the bicycle to bear a marking or label that cannot be removed without being defaced or destroyed.
• The marking or label must identify the name of the manufacturer or private labeler; there must be information that allows the manufacturer to identify the month and year of manufacture of the bicycle.
• There are three theories of recovery: strict liability, negligence and breach of warranty.
• Strict liability attaches when a manufacturer puts an article on the market knowing that it is to be used without inspection for defects, and it proves to have a defect that causes injury. Negligence theory means that the plaintiff prove that the defendant knew something was wrong; breach of warranty means that the plaintiff prove that he was using the bicycle in a manner that it was designed for.
• Proof that a defect resulted in an injury is a prerequisite to any recovery.
• The plaintiff must prove the following: there was a defect in the product; the defect made the product unreasonably dangerous; the defect existed at the time the product left the defendant; and, the defect was a direct and proximate cause of plaintiff's injury or loss.
• Product modification may result in defendant avoiding liability.
• Manufacturers must exercise due or utmost care in assuring that their product is safe.
• Conclusions: Frame and Wheel must write and instruction manual about how the consumer should ride the bike and warn about the hazards; Frame and Wheel should have the frames tested with various component packages; Frame and Wheel needs to read the entire Consumer Protection regulations on bicycles 16 CFR 1512.8; Frame and Wheel should test the frames in the United States.