OGH Rules on Product Liability Claims

Feb 2, 2024 Benn-Ibler Rechtsanwälte

The Austrian Supreme Court (Oberster Gerichtshof, hereinafter OGH) has again considered claims for damages under the Austrian Product Liability Act (Produkthaftungsgesetz, hereinafter PHG) and ruled that instructions in pictogram form are generally insufficient to warn of a specific product risk.

The defendant is a manufacturer and distributor of grass trimmers. In May 2017, the defendant company replaced their previously sold trimmers with two-toothed blades by three-toothed blades. The correct assembly of the blade was described using six graphic images. The instructions did not indicate how tight the thread needs to be wound.

Four months later, the plaintiff was injured while mowing with the trimmer. The triple-tooth blade came off the trimmer and struck the plaintiff’s lower leg. The defendant had previously confirmed the suitability of the new triple-tooth blade for the grass trimmer. The plaintiff had fitted the blade in accordance with the plaintiff’s instructions and had also added a snap ring.

The plaintiff sought compensation from the defendant under the PHG for the consequences of his injury.

Both the court of first instance and the court of appeal held that the defendant had failed to comply with its duty to provide instructions. The OGH added as follows:

The pictograms in the instructions did not indicate that a certain torque had to be applied when assembling the cutter. It is therefore sufficient that the plaintiff tightened the thread with the maximum possible force. Furthermore, the grass trimmer with the three-tooth blade must be considered to be defective in design, as it no longer corresponded to state-of-the-art at the time it was placed on the market.

The plaintiff had also used a snap ring for stabilisation when fitting the triple tooth blade. The use of such a ring had no discernible detrimental effect, so the plaintiff cannot be accused of contributory negligence.

OGH 8 Ob 169/22v (17 November 2023)