What test evaluates whether the risks posed by a product outweigh its benefits?

The risk-utility test is employed to evaluate whether the dangers associated with a product's design outweigh the advantages it offers. This test is central to determining product liability in cases related to defective design. Under this standard, a court weighs the product's utility—essentially its benefits and usefulness—against the risks it presents to users.

If overall the risks are found to surpass the benefits, the product may be deemed defectively designed. This type of analysis helps protect consumers by holding manufacturers accountable for designing products that could foreseeably cause unnecessary harm to users. It focuses on the balance of safety versus utility; manufacturers are encouraged to create safer alternatives if the risks are too high relative to the product's usefulness.

The consumer-expectation test involves assessing how a reasonable user would expect a product to perform and whether it meets those expectations, while the design deficiency test may look specifically at flaws in the design itself. The product safety test typically refers to compliance with specific safety standards rather than a broader evaluation of risks and benefits. Therefore, the risk-utility test is the most comprehensive and relevant method for this evaluation.