Higher volume of product liability claims

The pandemic and the vaccination race created an unprecedented environment for healthcare and life sciences companies, which were at the forefront of the Covid-19 response. At the same time, attitudes about the amount of risk people are willing to take in using new products and where to place the responsibility in case of an injury have changed in the recent period. In this context, it’s anticipated that companies will be forced to contend with a higher volume of claims. In most European countries there is an increased use and recourse to digital health products, especially telemedicine, as a result of Covid-19 restrictive measures. This expands the scope for product liability involving app developers, telemedicine and software manufacturers. Also, Covid-19 treatments and vaccines could, in some countries, trigger adverse reactions from patients, who may ask for compensation from either the state, the physicians/hospitals and, at some point from producers of those treatments.

Healthcare and Life Sciences