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Manufacturer Liability for Harms Caused by Consumers to Others

Bruce L. Hay, Harvard Law School
Kathryn E. Spier, Northwestern University - Kellogg School of Management

Abstract

This paper investigates whether manufacturers should be liable if consumers, through the use of a product, cause harm to others. If consumers have deep pockets then consumer-only liability is socially desirable. With consumer insolvency, however, consumer-only liability leads to inadequate consumer precautions, inadequate safety features, and excessive economic activity. With homogeneous insolvent consumers, the best rule is "residual-manufacturer liability" where the consumer bears primary responsibility and the manufacturer bears the shortfall in damages. When consumers' willingness-to-pay is correlated with social harm they cause then residual-manufacturer liability distorts the market quantity. When consumers differ in their wealth then residual-manufacturer liability creates an inefficient cross-subsidization and an overprovision of safety features. In both cases, consumer-only liability may be preferred to residual-manufacturer liability. Applications, including gun manufacturer liability, are discussed.

Recommended Citation

Bruce L. Hay and Kathryn E. Spier, "Manufacturer Liability for Harms Caused by Consumers to Others" (August 2003). Northwestern Law Legal Working Paper Series. Law and Economics Papers. Working Paper 28.
http://law.bepress.com/nwwps/lep/art28

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