Sweden's Product Liability Act

Sweden has drafted a Product Liability Act that if passed, could automatically award compensation if a product is shown to be "not as safe as could be expected" when first introduced.

This liability will extend to anyone who has manufactured the product, imported it or even marketed under his own name, and allows lawsuits to be initiated up to 25 years later for personal injuries.The proposal the toughest liability act in Europe expected to become law by July l99l, will have particular relevance to the pharmaceutical industry. Although the drug industry there has a collective insurance scheme, which pays for injuries caused by unexpected adverse drug reactions, the scheme limits the amount that may be awarded.

Unlike the Swedes, the British have different priorities. Here you have three years to claim for personal injuries and six years to claim for property damage, leading many to suspect that, in this country, a man's body is less sancrosanct than is his castle.