roduct safety labels are an important part of keeping users safe and reducing liability risk. There are two main standards for safety labels that are key to creating effective warnings that accurately communicate hazard information: ANSI Z535.4 domestically and ISO 3864-2 internationally. The current versions of these standards allow manufacturers to use different label format options: symbol-only, symbol and text, text-only ANSI, wordless, and multilingual. Deciding the best fit for your intended audience isn’t always easy. It helps to understand the product liability and legal landscape. For perspective, we turned to Cal Burnton, a trial attorney with 30 years of experience in product/machinery safety, product liability, and complex litigation. Read our interview below for context on the importance of adequate labels and insight on formatting options, including the increasing trend toward labels that rely mainly or exclusively on symbols.
Many lawsuits involve a misuse of the product. The extent to which the company was able to anticipate foreseeable misuse and therefore warn against it often is a critical issue in a case. Manufacturers must revisit their warnings and instructions regularly to evaluate if they remain adequate, given how the product is being used in the marketplace. Adequacy of warnings will be judged partly by what was known by the company as to the uses and misuse of its product. Companies need to be aware of how their product is being shown on social media. Complaints of injuries must be investigated to determine if a change in warnings is necessary.
Manufacturers will be deemed to be experts in their field, which includes knowing how people are foreseeably using, misusing, and modifying their product. Failure to warn about foreseeable misuses or modifications may lead to liability.
Warnings have to do more than warn; they have to adequately warn. So the old method of listing hazards in a laundry list manner, or like a legal contract, will no longer suffice. The warnings must communicate in a simple and direct manner. Pictorials can accomplish just that. The standards recognize that pictorials can communicate messages to users from many walks of life with diverse backgrounds, educational levels, and languages. Manufacturers now have many tools in the tool chest to communicate warnings, and failure to consider a wordless approach would be a mistake.