House Bill No. 7194
Public Act No. 17-97
AN ACT CONCERNING EXCEPTIONS TO THE TEN-YEAR REPOSE PERIOD FOR CERTAIN PRODUCT LIABILITY CLAIMS.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subsection (c) of section 52-577a of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective October 1, 2017):
(c) The ten-year limitation provided for in subsection (a) of this section shall not apply to any product liability claim brought by a claimant who [is not entitled to compensation under chapter 568, provided the claimant] can prove that the harm occurred during the useful safe life of the product. In determining whether a product's useful safe life has expired, the trier of fact may consider among other factors: (1) The effect on the product of wear and tear or deterioration from natural causes; (2) the effect of climatic and other local conditions in which the product was used; (3) the policy of the user and similar users as to repairs, renewals and replacements; (4) representations, instructions and warnings made by the product seller about the useful safe life of the product; and (5) any modification or alteration of the product by a user or third party.