Question

A driver on a 3,000-mile cross-country trip in his new car tried to drive the entire trip without stopping, but fell asleep at the wheel, causing the car to strike a bridge abutment and roll over. The driver was seriously injured by the rollover, and suffered additional injuries when the turn signal rod broke off and punctured his lung.

The driver had purchased the car from his local auto dealer. The car was manufactured by a local manufacturer, and the turn signal rod was manufactured by a subcontractor whom the manufacturer had used for many years. Tests after the accident established that the turn signal rod was defective and that the defect was the reason it broke off. The defect was not discov- erable through reasonable inspection and the manufacturer had had no prior indication of any defects.
The driver brought a strict liability action against the manufacturer in a jurisdiction that does not apply its comparative negligence rules to strict liability actions.
What is the likely result of the driver's action?
(A) The driver will be awarded damages for all injuries incurred as a result of the accident.
(B) The driver will be awarded damages for injuries incurred because the turn signal rod was defective, but he will not recover for other injuries incurred in the accident.
(C) The manufacturer will prevail, because the accident was caused by the driver's negli- gence.
(D) The manufacturer will prevail, because the driver cannot show that the manufacturer knew or should have known that the turn signal rod was defective.

Answer 1

(B) The driver will be awarded damages for injuries from the turn signal rod.

Step-by-step explanation:

Even though the defective turn signal rod was not the proximate cause of the accident, the driver can recover from the manufacturer for the additional injuries suffered due to the defective turn signal rod, because those are identifiable as caused by that defect. The manufacturer is strictly liable under a products liability theory for injuries caused by that defect, even though a subcontractor manufactured the rod. Thus, (B) is the correct answer.