Understanding Defective Guns And Gun Malfunctions

Like any other manufactured product that requires manual operation, a firearm can become defective at any time, or can be purchased with a defect. There have been countless stories of fatal accidents involving guns that have gone off without anyone pulling the trigger.

The popular firearm brand Remington was involved in a class action settlement last year after many of the company’s 700 rifles went off without a trigger pulled, causing injuries and fatalities. If you are a gun owner, or you live in a house with guns, you should know how and why gun defects occur in order to protect yourself and your family.

What Are Some Common Gun Malfunctions?

• Incomplete discharges. This happens when a round is fired but gets stuck inside the gun barrel. If a second round is shot after the incomplete discharge, it will strike the lodged round and can cause the firearm to explode.
• Delayed discharges. This occurs when a gun fails to fire and hasn’t completely fired off. If the trigger is pulled and the primer goes off, but the propellant in the cartridge burns slowly and creates pressure to push the bullet out of the barrel a few seconds later, it will delay.
• Extract failures. If a cartridge is fired, it must be extracted by the gun’s barrel and then ejected. However, old, dirty or corroded guns could fail to extract that used cartridge, possibly causing the gun to explode.

How Do I Report a Gun Defect?

It’s important to know that the gun industry is the only consumer industry that isn’t regulated by the federal government, which means that it’s exempt from all federal safety and health laws. Federal agencies cannot require gun manufacturers to recall defective guns, which means there might be millions of gun owners who currently have defective guns.

You may be entitled to compensation if you have been injured due to a gun defect. If you would like to know more information about your defective firearm, you should speak with Tommy James at Tommy James Law in Birmingham.

Settlement claims for the Taurus pistol class action lawsuit ended in February 2018, but there are still almost one million guns out in America that have known defects. Personal injury attorney Tommy James has experience handling defective gun cases. In one case handled by Tommy James, he secured a $1.5 million jury verdict for a client who was severely injured by a defective Taurus pistol safety mechanism.