Allenberg v. Bentley Hedges Travel Serv. Inc.
72 O.B.A.J. 815, 2001 OK 22, 22 P.3d 223 (2001)
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Rule of Law:
The doctrine of manufacturers' products liability does not apply to a commercial seller of a used product for an alleged defect that was not created by the seller, provided the product is sold in essentially the same condition as it was when acquired for resale.
Facts:
- Arkansas Bus Exchange (Arkansas Bus), a commercial seller of used buses, sold a used shuttle bus to Bentley Hedges Travel.
- The shuttle bus was not equipped with seat belts, adequate handholds, or secured luggage compartments.
- Bentley Hedges Travel used the bus to transport Ava Pattee Allenberg and her daughter, Gwinn Norman.
- The driver of the bus ran a red light, causing a collision with other vehicles.
- As a result of the collision, Allenberg and Norman were flung from their seats and injured.
- Ava Allenberg died from her injuries a few days after the accident.
- Arkansas Bus did not manufacture, design, alter, modify, or recondition the bus before reselling it.
Procedural Posture:
- Gwinn Norman, on her own behalf and as the personal representative of her mother's estate, filed a lawsuit in the trial court against Bentley Hedges Travel, the bus driver, and Arkansas Bus.
- Bentley Hedges and the bus driver were dismissed from the lawsuit.
- Arkansas Bus filed a motion for summary judgment arguing the bus was not defective, which the trial court denied.
- Arkansas Bus filed a second motion for summary judgment, arguing that manufacturers' products liability is inapplicable to commercial sellers of used products.
- The trial court granted the second motion for summary judgment in favor of Arkansas Bus.
- The estate representatives (plaintiffs) appealed the trial court's grant of summary judgment to the Oklahoma Supreme Court.
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Issue:
Does the doctrine of manufacturers' products liability apply to a commercial seller of a used product for an alleged defect that the seller did not create, where the product is sold in essentially the same condition as it was when acquired for resale?
Opinions:
Majority - Kauger, J.
No. The doctrine of manufacturers' products liability does not extend to a commercial seller of a used product under these circumstances. The rationale for imposing strict liability on manufacturers—that they are responsible for their products reaching the market and are best situated to protect against risks—does not apply with the same force to a seller of used goods. Such sellers are typically outside the original chain of distribution, have no direct channel of communication with the manufacturer, and do not create the same consumer expectations of safety as sellers of new products. The court aligns with the majority of jurisdictions, adopting the reasoning of Tillman v. Vance Equipment Co., which emphasizes that used goods markets operate on the understanding that sellers are not making special representations of quality simply by offering a product for sale. Because Arkansas Bus did not create the defect and sold the bus in an unaltered condition, it cannot be held strictly liable.
Analysis:
This decision formally aligns Oklahoma with the majority of American jurisdictions by limiting the scope of strict products liability. It establishes a clear boundary, shielding commercial sellers of unaltered used goods from liability for manufacturing or design defects they did not create. This ruling reinforces the policy distinction between original manufacturers, who control product safety, and subsequent resellers, who do not. The decision will likely make it more difficult for plaintiffs to recover from used-goods dealers under a strict liability theory, pushing them toward negligence claims which require proof of the seller's fault.
