Compensation for Defective Products in Turkey

Introduction

Compensation for defective products in Turkey is an important legal remedy for consumers, businesses, foreign buyers, tourists, distributors and end users who suffer financial loss, bodily injury, property damage or emotional harm because of a defective or unsafe product. A defective product may be a household appliance, electronic device, vehicle, medical device, cosmetic product, food product, toy, machinery, construction material, furniture, battery, charger, textile product, baby product, industrial equipment or any other item placed on the market.

Turkish law protects buyers and injured persons through several legal mechanisms. If the product is defective in the consumer law sense, the buyer may have rights such as withdrawal from the contract, price reduction, free repair or replacement with a non-defective equivalent. If the product is unsafe and causes injury, death or damage to another product, product liability rules and general compensation principles may also apply. If the defective product causes bodily injury, the injured person may claim medical expenses, loss of income, permanent disability compensation and moral damages. If the product causes death, dependants may claim loss of support compensation and moral damages.

The legal framework is not limited to one statute. Defective product claims in Turkey may involve the Turkish Consumer Protection Law No. 6502, the Turkish Code of Obligations No. 6098, the Product Safety and Technical Regulations Law No. 7223, commercial law, insurance law, product-specific technical regulations, administrative sanctions and, in serious cases, criminal law. Law No. 7223 was published in the Official Gazette on 12 March 2020 and entered into force in March 2021; it provides a general framework for product safety, technical regulations, market surveillance, economic operators’ obligations and product liability principles.

For foreign consumers and businesses, defective product compensation claims in Turkey require particular attention to evidence, invoices, product origin, importer identity, manufacturer information, technical reports, expert examination, translation of documents and jurisdiction. A properly prepared claim can help recover the purchase price, repair costs, replacement costs, medical expenses, commercial loss, moral damages and other losses caused by a defective product.

What Is a Defective Product Under Turkish Law?

The concept of a defective product may be evaluated in two different ways under Turkish law. First, a product may be defective under consumer law because it does not comply with the contract, sample, model, advertised qualities or reasonable expectations. Second, a product may be unsafe under product safety law because it creates a risk to human health, life, property, environment or consumer safety.

Under the Consumer Protection Law No. 6502, a defective good is a product that is contrary to the contract because, at the time of delivery, it does not conform to the agreed sample or model or does not have the objective qualities it should have. Goods that do not contain features stated on packaging, labels, user manuals, internet portals, advertisements or announcements, or that contain material, legal or economic deficiencies reducing or eliminating the benefits reasonably expected by the consumer, are also considered defective.

This definition is broad. A product may be defective even if it physically works. For example, a smartphone may be defective if it lacks advertised storage capacity. A washing machine may be defective if it fails to perform normal washing functions. A baby stroller may be defective if its locking mechanism fails. A cosmetic product may be defective if it does not match its declared ingredients or causes harm due to unsafe formulation. A car may be defective if it has a hidden manufacturing defect, safety system failure or repeated mechanical malfunction.

The key issue is whether the product corresponds to the contract, objective expectations, technical regulations, advertised characteristics and safe use standards.

Defective Product and Unsafe Product: What Is the Difference?

A defective product and an unsafe product are related but not identical concepts.

A defective product usually concerns the buyer’s expectations under the contract. The product may not work properly, may not match the model, may be missing promised features, may be economically defective or may fail to deliver the expected benefit. This often leads to consumer law remedies such as refund, replacement, repair or price reduction.

An unsafe product, however, creates a safety risk. It may cause fire, electric shock, burns, poisoning, choking, injury, explosion, illness, property damage or death. Product safety law focuses on public safety, technical compliance, market surveillance, recall obligations and liability of economic operators.

Law No. 7223 applies to all products intended to be placed on the market, placed on the market, made available on the market or put into service. It also requires products to comply with technical regulations and states that products that do not comply with applicable technical regulations cannot be placed on the market, made available on the market or put into service until the non-compliance is remedied.

This distinction matters because a defective product claim may be a simple consumer dispute, while an unsafe product claim may involve bodily injury, death, recall procedures, administrative complaints and higher compensation. A laptop that does not match advertised specifications may be defective. A laptop battery that overheats and causes burns or fire may be unsafe and may trigger broader product liability consequences.

Legal Basis of Defective Product Compensation in Turkey

Defective product compensation in Turkey may be based on multiple legal grounds.

The first ground is consumer law. Consumer buyers may rely on the Turkish Consumer Protection Law No. 6502 when a product is defective. This law gives consumers specific optional rights and imposes responsibility on sellers, and in some cases producers or importers.

The second ground is product safety and product liability law. Law No. 7223 regulates product safety, technical regulations, market surveillance, recall obligations and responsibilities of economic operators such as manufacturers, importers, distributors and authorized representatives. The Ministry of Trade’s product rules database explains that the law introduced traceability, separate roles for manufacturers, importers, authorized representatives and distributors, mandatory recall of unsafe products and product liability principles.

The third ground is the Turkish Code of Obligations. If a defective product causes damage, general tort liability and compensation rules may apply. Article 49 establishes the general principle that a person who unlawfully and faultily causes damage must compensate it. Articles 54 and 56 become important where the defective product causes bodily injury, permanent disability, pain, suffering or death.

The fourth ground is contractual liability. If the buyer is a business or the transaction is not a consumer transaction, the claim may be based on sales contract, warranty, commercial contract, product specifications, technical standards or breach of contractual obligations.

Therefore, the legal route depends on who bought the product, who was injured, what kind of damage occurred, whether the product is unsafe, whether the buyer is a consumer or merchant, and whether a special technical regulation applies.

Consumer Rights for Defective Products

Consumer rights are central in defective product cases. Under Article 11 of the Consumer Protection Law No. 6502, when a product is defective, the consumer may choose one of four remedies: withdrawal from the contract by declaring readiness to return the product, keeping the product and requesting a price reduction proportionate to the defect, requesting free repair at the seller’s expense if it does not require excessive cost, or requesting replacement with a non-defective equivalent if possible. The seller is obliged to fulfill the consumer’s chosen remedy.

The law also allows the rights of free repair or replacement to be exercised against the producer or importer. For these rights, the seller, producer and importer may be jointly responsible, unless the producer or importer proves that the defect arose after the product was placed on the market.

This is a powerful framework for consumers. A consumer who buys a defective refrigerator, phone, furniture item, vehicle part, cosmetic product, baby product or electronic device may not be limited to repair. Depending on the facts, the consumer may demand refund, replacement, price reduction or free repair.

Importantly, Article 11 also provides that the consumer may claim compensation under the Turkish Code of Obligations together with one of these optional rights. This means that if the defective product causes additional damage beyond the product itself, the consumer may seek compensation in addition to refund, repair or replacement.

Manufacturer, Importer and Seller Liability

Different parties may be responsible in defective product cases.

The seller is usually the first party contacted by the consumer because the sales contract is between the seller and the buyer. The seller may be liable for delivering a product that is defective at the time of delivery.

The manufacturer may be liable where the defect results from design, production, assembly, labeling, instruction, warning or safety failure. The manufacturer may also be involved where the product is unsafe and causes injury, death or damage to other property.

The importer may be liable where the product was imported into Turkey and placed on the Turkish market. This is especially important for foreign-made electronics, cosmetics, machinery, medical devices, vehicle parts, toys and household products.

The distributor may be relevant in product safety law because traceability and supply-chain obligations can require distributors to know from whom they received the product and to whom they supplied it. The Ministry of Trade’s product safety database states that Law No. 7223 introduced traceability and separately defined the roles and responsibilities of manufacturers, importers, authorized representatives and distributors.

In practice, the claimant should identify all potentially responsible parties: the retailer, e-commerce platform, marketplace seller, importer, manufacturer, distributor, authorized service, warranty provider and insurer if any. A claim filed only against a weak or unknown seller may be ineffective if the real responsible operator is another company.

Product Liability for Injury, Death and Property Damage

Defective products may cause serious harm. A faulty battery may explode. A defective toy may choke a child. A contaminated food product may cause illness. A defective medical device may injure a patient. A defective machine may injure a worker. A faulty car part may cause a traffic accident. A defective cosmetic product may cause burns or allergic injury.

When a defective or unsafe product causes bodily injury, the injured person may claim medical expenses, hospital costs, medication, rehabilitation, loss of income, temporary incapacity, permanent disability compensation and moral damages. If the product causes death, relatives and dependants may claim funeral expenses, loss of support compensation and moral damages.

Law No. 7223 specifically emphasizes product liability principles. The Ministry of Trade’s Turkish explanation states that, against death, injury or damage to another product caused by an unsafe product, the manufacturer or importer will be liable for compensation to the injured person.

This is important because product injury claims are not limited to the buyer. A person harmed by the product may be someone other than the purchaser. For example, a guest injured by a defective appliance, a child harmed by a toy, a worker injured by a machine or a family member burned by a defective charger may claim compensation even if they did not personally buy the product.

Material Compensation for Defective Products

Material compensation covers measurable financial losses caused by the defective product. In simple consumer disputes, the main financial remedy may be refund, repair cost, replacement cost or price reduction. In serious cases, material compensation may include medical expenses, property damage, lost income, business interruption, product recall costs, repair of damaged property and future treatment expenses.

For example, if a defective washing machine floods an apartment, the buyer may claim not only refund or replacement of the machine, but also damage to flooring, furniture and other belongings. If a defective power bank causes a fire, the injured person may claim property damage, medical costs and moral damages. If defective industrial machinery stops production, a company may claim repair costs, replacement costs and commercial losses if causation is proven.

Material damages must be documented. Useful evidence includes invoices, purchase receipts, warranty documents, repair reports, technical service records, photographs, videos, expert reports, medical records, bank records, insurance correspondence, fire reports, laboratory reports and replacement product invoices.

A strong material compensation claim should separate the purchase-price claim from additional damages. The claimant should explain which damage was caused directly by the defective product and how the amount was calculated.

Moral Compensation for Defective Product Injuries

Moral compensation may be claimed when a defective product causes bodily injury, pain, suffering, emotional distress, visible scars, fear, trauma, loss of life quality or death of a close relative.

For example, a consumer burned by an exploding electronic device may claim moral damages for pain, fear and scarring. A parent whose child is injured by an unsafe toy may claim moral damages where the legal conditions are met. A person who suffers permanent injury because of defective machinery may claim moral compensation in addition to disability compensation.

Moral compensation is not calculated through invoices. Turkish courts consider the severity of injury, degree of fault, permanence of harm, psychological impact, age of the injured person, social consequences and fairness. If the product defect caused serious bodily harm, permanent disability, disfigurement or death, moral damages may become a significant part of the claim.

A moral compensation claim should be supported by medical records, photographs, psychological reports, witness statements and clear explanation of the personal impact. The petition should explain how the defective product affected the claimant’s body, health, dignity, daily life, family life and emotional well-being.

Product Recall and Consumer Remedies

Product recall is an important part of product safety law. If other measures are insufficient to eliminate risk, the economic operator must recall the product either voluntarily or upon request by the competent authority. The recall announcement must include information such as where the product will be delivered or repaired and the options offered to the final user.

Under Law No. 7223, when a product is recalled, the economic operator must offer the final user at least one of the following options: remedying the problem that caused the recall, paying the retail value of the product at the delivery date, or replacing it with a safe and equivalent product compliant with the technical regulation. The costs of recall must be borne by the recalling economic operator, and the final user should not bear additional costs for timely and easy delivery of the product.

Recall does not automatically eliminate compensation claims. If the unsafe product already caused injury, property damage or financial loss, the injured person may still claim compensation. Recall may actually support the claimant’s argument that the product contained a safety risk, although the specific defect, damage and causal link must still be proven.

Consumers should preserve recall notices, serial numbers, batch information, product photographs, purchase documents and correspondence with the seller or manufacturer.

Defective Products Sold Online

E-commerce is highly relevant in defective product disputes. Consumers frequently buy electronics, cosmetics, supplements, household goods, toys, imported devices and appliances through online platforms. Online product listings, descriptions, images, reviews, advertisements and seller statements may become evidence.

The Ministry of Trade’s product safety database notes that Law No. 7223 includes online trade within its scope, meaning products sold online should also be safe and compliant with relevant technical regulations, and market surveillance may be carried out for online products.

This is important because online sellers cannot avoid responsibility merely by saying that the product was sold through a marketplace. The responsible parties may include the seller, importer, manufacturer, distributor and potentially platform-related actors depending on the legal framework and facts.

Consumers should preserve screenshots of the online listing, product description, seller identity, order confirmation, invoice, delivery records, messages, return requests and platform responses. If the product page is later changed or removed, early evidence may be decisive.

Defective Product Claims by Businesses

Not all defective product claims are consumer claims. Businesses may also suffer losses due to defective products. A factory may buy defective machinery. A restaurant may buy defective kitchen equipment. A construction company may use defective building materials. A logistics company may buy defective vehicle parts. A retailer may suffer loss because of defective goods supplied by a manufacturer.

Business claims may be governed by commercial law, sales contract rules, warranty clauses, Turkish Code of Obligations provisions, technical specifications and expert reports. Unlike consumer claims, business buyers may not benefit from all consumer-specific protections, but they may still claim contractual damages, repair costs, replacement costs, loss of profit and other losses if legal conditions are met.

Commercial defective product claims are often more technical and document-heavy. The claimant must prove the contract, product specifications, defect, notification, damage, causal link and amount. Evidence may include purchase orders, invoices, delivery notes, inspection reports, technical service records, correspondence, expert reports, production records, accounting documents and commercial books.

If the claim is commercial and concerns monetary receivables or compensation, mandatory mediation may need to be completed before filing a lawsuit under Turkish commercial litigation rules.

Evidence Required for Defective Product Compensation

Evidence is decisive in defective product claims. The claimant should preserve the product if possible. The product should not be repaired, modified, discarded or returned without proper documentation if serious damage occurred. In many cases, expert examination of the product is essential.

Important evidence includes the product itself, packaging, serial number, batch number, label, user manual, invoice, warranty certificate, online listing, advertisements, photographs, videos, repair reports, authorized service records, technical expert reports, medical records, property damage photographs, fire reports, laboratory test results, witness statements, correspondence with seller or manufacturer, recall notices and complaint records.

If injury occurred, medical records should be obtained immediately. If fire or explosion occurred, official reports should be requested. If the defective product damaged other property, photographs and repair invoices should be preserved before cleaning or repair. If the product was bought online, screenshots and order records should be saved.

A strong defective product case often depends on the chain of evidence. The claimant should be able to show what product was purchased, from whom, when it was delivered, what defect existed, how the defect caused damage and what losses resulted.

Expert Reports in Defective Product Cases

Expert reports are frequently necessary in defective product claims. Courts may appoint technical experts, engineers, electronics experts, automotive experts, medical experts, fire experts, food safety experts, chemical experts or accounting experts depending on the product and damage.

An expert may examine whether the product had a design defect, manufacturing defect, warning defect, assembly defect, labeling defect, safety defect or non-compliance with technical regulations. In injury cases, medical experts may evaluate the extent of bodily harm. In commercial cases, accounting experts may calculate financial loss.

Expert reports can determine the outcome of the case. If the report is incomplete, ignores key evidence, fails to examine the actual product, overlooks recall notices or uses the wrong technical standard, the claimant should object and request an additional report or new expert panel.

A lawyer should prepare the file for expert review by submitting all technical documents, photographs, product samples, service records and questions to be answered.

Limitation Periods for Defective Product Claims

Limitation periods depend on the legal basis of the claim.

For consumer defective goods, Article 12 of the Consumer Protection Law provides that, unless a longer period is set by law or contract, liability for defective goods is subject to a two-year limitation period from delivery, even if the defect appears later. For residential or holiday-purpose immovable properties, the period is five years from delivery. In second-hand sales, the seller’s liability cannot be less than one year, and for residential or holiday-purpose immovable property cannot be less than three years. If the defect is concealed by gross fault or fraud, limitation rules do not apply.

For tort-based compensation claims, such as bodily injury or property damage caused by an unsafe product, Article 72 of the Turkish Code of Obligations may be relevant. This provision generally provides a two-year period from learning the damage and liable person and a ten-year ultimate period from the harmful act; if the act also constitutes a criminal offence with a longer limitation period, the longer criminal limitation period may apply.

For commercial contract claims, other limitation periods may apply depending on the contract type. For product safety liability under Law No. 7223, specific analysis should be made according to the type of damage and responsible party.

Claimants should not delay. Evidence may disappear, the product may be repaired, online listings may be removed, recall notices may change and technical testing may become more difficult.

Which Court or Authority Handles Defective Product Claims?

The competent authority depends on the claim value, claimant status and legal basis.

For consumer disputes, consumer arbitration committees or consumer courts may be relevant. In 2026, the Ministry of Trade announced that the monetary threshold for consumer arbitration committee applications was set at 186,000 TL as of 1 January 2026. Consumer disputes below this amount can be brought before consumer arbitration committees; higher-value disputes must proceed through the relevant judicial route.

Consumer courts generally handle higher-value consumer disputes and disputes that fall outside consumer arbitration committee jurisdiction. Mandatory consumer mediation may also be relevant depending on the type and value of the dispute.

If the product caused bodily injury, death or high-value property damage, civil courts, consumer courts or commercial courts may be competent depending on the parties and legal relationship. If the claimant is a business and the dispute is commercial, commercial courts may be relevant. If the product is linked to workplace injury, labour law and employer liability may also arise.

Administrative complaints may also be made to relevant ministries or market surveillance authorities where product safety issues exist. However, administrative complaints do not replace civil compensation claims.

Defective Product Claims by Foreigners in Turkey

Foreigners can file defective product compensation claims in Turkey if the product was purchased in Turkey, placed on the Turkish market, caused damage in Turkey or Turkish courts have jurisdiction. A foreign tourist may be injured by a defective hotel appliance, a foreign resident may buy a defective vehicle, a foreign business may purchase defective machinery from a Turkish supplier, or a foreign consumer may buy an unsafe product online from a Turkish seller.

Foreign claimants should preserve invoices, product photographs, medical records, import/export documents, shipping records, warranty papers, online order records and correspondence. Documents issued abroad may need apostille and sworn translation before Turkish courts.

If the product caused injury after the foreign claimant returned home, foreign medical records and expert reports may be relevant. The claimant should document the product, injury and causal link carefully. A Turkish lawyer may represent foreign claimants through a valid power of attorney.

Criminal and Administrative Dimensions of Unsafe Products

Serious defective product cases may also involve criminal or administrative consequences. Unsafe products may trigger market surveillance, recall, administrative fines, product bans, public warnings or criminal investigation depending on the facts.

For example, a food product causing mass poisoning, a defective toy harming children, a dangerous electrical device causing fire, or a medical device causing injury may require notification to authorities. Administrative proceedings may help establish product risk, but they do not automatically compensate the victim. The injured person may still need a civil compensation lawsuit.

Criminal complaints may be useful where the unsafe product caused serious injury or death, or where there is suspicion of fraud, counterfeit goods, false labeling, intentional concealment of risk or gross negligence.

Civil, administrative and criminal routes should be coordinated. A recall or administrative finding may support the civil claim, but compensation still requires proof of damage, defect, causal link and responsible party.

Common Mistakes in Defective Product Claims

Common mistakes include throwing away the product, failing to keep packaging, accepting repair without documentation, not taking photographs, missing the invoice, relying only on verbal complaints, failing to preserve online listing screenshots, signing settlement documents, waiting too long, not obtaining medical records, not proving causal link and filing against the wrong party.

Another common mistake is treating every product failure as a product liability case. A simple malfunction may justify repair or replacement, but injury compensation requires proof that the defect caused damage. Conversely, some consumers limit themselves to repair or refund even though the defective product caused additional property damage or bodily injury. In such cases, compensation should be evaluated separately.

Consumers and businesses should also be careful with broad release documents. A seller may offer refund or replacement in exchange for a waiver. If the product caused injury or property damage, signing a broad release may harm future compensation rights.

Practical Steps After Damage Caused by a Defective Product

A person harmed by a defective product in Turkey should act quickly.

First, stop using the product if it is dangerous. Second, preserve the product, packaging, labels, serial number and invoice. Third, take photographs and videos of the product, defect and damage. Fourth, obtain medical treatment immediately if injury occurred. Fifth, request official reports where necessary, such as fire reports, police records, hospital reports or laboratory tests. Sixth, notify the seller, manufacturer or importer in writing. Seventh, preserve all correspondence and online listing evidence. Eighth, obtain legal advice before accepting repair, refund or settlement if additional damage occurred.

If the product is unsafe and may harm others, administrative notification or complaint to the relevant authority should also be considered. If the product is recalled, the claimant should preserve recall notices and communications.

Why Legal Representation Is Important

Defective product compensation claims can be legally and technically complex. A lawyer must determine whether the case is a consumer defect, unsafe product, contractual breach, tort claim, product liability claim, commercial dispute or administrative safety issue. The lawyer must also identify responsible parties, preserve evidence, request expert reports, calculate damages, comply with deadlines and file the claim before the correct authority.

Legal representation is especially important in bodily injury, death, fire, explosion, child injury, medical device failure, vehicle defect, machinery defect, imported product disputes, e-commerce disputes and commercial loss cases.

A strong claim should not merely say that the product was defective. It should explain what defect existed, when it existed, which party is responsible, how the defect caused damage, what evidence proves the causal link and what compensation is legally justified.

Conclusion

Compensation for defective products in Turkey protects consumers, businesses and injured persons against financial loss, bodily injury, property damage and moral harm caused by defective or unsafe products. The legal framework includes consumer law, product safety law, the Turkish Code of Obligations, commercial law and product-specific technical regulations.

Under the Consumer Protection Law No. 6502, consumers may choose among withdrawal from the contract, price reduction, free repair or replacement with a non-defective equivalent when the product is defective. The consumer may also claim compensation under the Turkish Code of Obligations together with these optional rights.

Law No. 7223 provides the broader product safety framework. It applies to products placed on the market or put into service, regulates technical compliance, defines obligations of economic operators, introduces traceability, requires recall where necessary and covers product liability principles. The law also requires economic operators to announce product risks and recall unsafe products where other measures are insufficient, offering final users repair, payment of retail value or replacement with a safe equivalent product.

A successful defective product compensation claim depends on early evidence preservation, technical analysis, proof of defect, causal link, damage calculation and correct identification of responsible parties. Consumers should keep the product, packaging, invoice, warranty documents, photographs, medical records, repair reports and all communication with the seller or manufacturer.

For Turkish citizens, foreign buyers, tourists, residents and businesses alike, a properly prepared defective product compensation claim in Turkey can help recover refund, replacement costs, repair expenses, medical costs, property damage, loss of income, commercial losses and moral damages. Timely legal action and professional representation are especially important where the product caused injury, death, fire, serious property damage or high-value commercial loss.