Dangerous or Contaminated Pharmaceuticals Claims

You trust your medicine to help you heal—not to make things worse. But if you’ve taken a prescription or over-the-counter product that caused a serious reaction, unexpected illness, or even a hospital admission, you’re likely feeling blindsided—and unsure where to turn.

We’ve met people right here in Tallaght who followed their GP’s advice, picked up their prescription, and ended up dealing with side effects or injuries that no one warned them about. Some found out months later that the medication had been recalled or found to be contaminated. Others were never told at all.

At John O’Leary Solicitors LLP, we’ve spent over two decades helping individuals and families across Dublin who’ve been let down by the very products they relied on to get better. We’ve handled claims involving tainted batches, incorrect dosages, undisclosed risks, and medications that should never have been released to the public.

Our approach is local, personal, and always steady. You’ll speak directly with a solicitor—someone who’ll listen properly, explain your rights, and help you take the next step without pressure or confusion.

If a pharmaceutical product has harmed your health or left you in the dark, contact us to help you find clarity and a way forward.

When Trusted Medicines Go Wrong

When you collect a prescription from your local pharmacy or pick up over-the-counter medicine at the chemist, the last thing on your mind is that the product might cause you harm. You expect it to help—not to land you in hospital or leave you dealing with long-term health complications. But unfortunately, some medications aren’t as safe as they should be. Whether due to poor manufacturing, hidden side effects, or labelling mistakes, the impact on real people can be severe.

We’ve seen it happen right here in Tallaght. A mother takes a medication to manage blood pressure and ends up fainting unexpectedly. An older man is given the wrong dosage of a heart drug and suffers a fall. A young woman begins taking a widely prescribed medication, only to develop symptoms that were never mentioned on the leaflet—symptoms that don’t go away. These stories aren’t rare, and they’re not just bad luck. They can be signs that something went seriously wrong with the drug itself.

Dangerous or contaminated pharmaceuticals come in many forms. Some may contain the wrong ingredients. Others may have been exposed to bacteria or toxins during production. Sometimes, the medicine itself is sound, but the instructions are incomplete or misleading. And in other cases, the product was fine—but the pharmacy dispensed the wrong item or confused the dosage.

What makes it even harder is that many people don’t realise they’ve been affected until much later. Symptoms may come on slowly, or you might be told they’re unrelated. That uncertainty can be incredibly frustrating—especially when you’ve done everything right. You trusted your GP. You took the medicine exactly as instructed. And yet, you’re the one left dealing with the consequences.

If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone. At John O’Leary Solicitors LLP, we’re here to help you make sense of what’s happened and take clear, steady steps toward finding a solution.

Common Medication Issues That Lead to Claims

Not all medication-related injuries come from taking the wrong pill or skipping a dose. In many cases, people suffer harm after using their medicine exactly as instructed—because the product itself was flawed, contaminated, or dangerous in ways no one warned them about.

At John O’Leary Solicitors LLP, we’ve worked with clients across Tallaght and Dublin who’ve experienced serious health consequences due to issues with medications they were prescribed or purchased in good faith. Below are some of the most common causes of pharmaceutical injury that may lead to a legal claim.

Contaminated Batches and Recalls

Contamination during manufacturing can introduce harmful substances into otherwise standard medicines. In recent years, there have been recalls in Ireland involving medications contaminated with toxins, unapproved chemical residues, or bacteria—some discovered only after patients reported symptoms.

If a contaminated product caused your illness, even before an official recall was issued, you may still have a claim. We’ve seen cases involving tainted blood pressure medication, eye drops, and even basic antibiotics. The issue often isn’t detected until multiple people report problems, and by then, it’s too late for those already affected.

Dangerous Side Effects That Were Withheld or Minimised

All medications come with some risks. But manufacturers are legally required to disclose serious or likely side effects. If they fail to do so—or if they delay releasing safety data—patients can end up blindsided.

Clients have come to us after suffering heart issues, liver damage, severe fatigue, or neurological problems that were never explained when they started treatment. In many of these cases, the side effects had been known by the manufacturer but were buried in complex data or withheld from packaging and patient leaflets.

Labelling and Dosage Errors

Incorrect labels, missing warnings, or poor dosage instructions can be just as dangerous as contamination. If a label fails to state how much to take or doesn’t warn about combining with other medications, the result can be overdose, underdose, or harmful drug interactions.

In some Tallaght pharmacies, we’ve seen cases where the wrong strength of medication was dispensed under the correct name—or where batch stickers were switched. These errors can lead to long-term consequences, particularly for children, older adults, or those with pre-existing health conditions.

Dispensing and Distribution Failures

Sometimes the problem doesn’t start with the drug itself, but with how it was handled. Dispensing errors at the pharmacy, where the wrong drug or strength is provided, are more common than many realise. A moment’s confusion between lookalike names or packaging can have real consequences.

There are also issues with distribution—such as expired stock being sold, or temperature-sensitive medications not being stored properly. These failures can reduce a drug’s effectiveness or cause unpredictable side effects.

Recalled Medicines Still in Circulation

Even after a product is recalled, it can take time for every chemist, clinic, and supplier to remove it from circulation. We’ve spoken to clients who were harmed by medicines that had technically been recalled—but no one told them, and they kept taking it for weeks or months.

If you’ve suffered harm after taking a medicine that was later pulled from the market, don’t assume the window has passed. Whether you were informed or not, the harm you experienced may still give rise to a valid claim.

What Makes a Medicine Legally 'Defective' in Ireland

In Irish law, a medicine is considered defective when it fails to meet the level of safety that a person is reasonably entitled to expect. This isn’t just about whether the drug worked—it’s about whether the product posed an unexpected risk to your health that you were not properly warned about or protected from.

Under the Liability for Defective Products Act, 1991, manufacturers and suppliers of pharmaceutical products are held to a strict standard. That means you don’t have to prove negligence. If the medication caused harm because of a defect, the law can hold the producer or distributor responsible—even if they didn’t intend any wrongdoing.

There are several ways a medicine can be classed as legally defective:

Manufacturing flaws– such as contamination, poor quality control, or batch inconsistencies.
Design defects– where the product itself is unsafe when used as directed.
Labelling or instruction failures– including missing dosage guidelines, interaction warnings, or side effect information.

Responsibility may lie with different parties, depending on where the issue occurred:

What’s important is not just that something went wrong—but that the harm was caused by a product that didn’t meet the safety standard expected by any ordinary user in Ireland.

It’s also important to remember: not every side effect means the product is defective. But if you’ve suffered unexpected or serious harm—especially if others have had similar experiences or the product has been withdrawn—there may be a strong legal basis for a claim.

At John O’Leary Solicitors LLP, we’ll help you assess that question clearly, using plain language and professional care. If there’s a case to be made, we’ll guide you through it.

How Long Do I Have to Make a Claim?

When you’ve suffered harm because of a dangerous or defective medicine, it’s natural to focus first on recovery. But it’s just as important to understand the legal time limits—because missing a deadline could mean losing your right to make a claim entirely.

Under Irish law, most claims involving defective pharmaceutical products are covered by the Liability for Defective Products Act, 1991. This law gives you three years to bring a claim—but the clock doesn’t necessarily start ticking the moment you take the medicine.

Instead, the time limit usually begins on the date you first became aware—or reasonably should have become aware—that the medicine caused your injury. This is known as the “date of knowledge.” That might be when you received a diagnosis, when symptoms appeared, or when you found out that others had experienced similar harm from the same product.

But there’s another crucial rule many people don’t know about: the 10-year backstop.

This rule sets a hard limit. Even if you only discovered the problem recently, you cannot bring a claim more than 10 years after the product was first placed on the market. That means if the medicine was manufactured and distributed over a decade ago, you may be legally out of time—even if your symptoms only started recently.

This is where things can get complicated:

These are all questions we can help you answer.

Timing issues are one of the most common reasons people lose out on claims they could have made. That’s why we always encourage anyone with a possible pharmaceutical injury to get advice sooner rather than later.

At John O’Leary Solicitors LLP, we’ll assess your situation quickly, thoroughly, and in confidence—so you know exactly where you stand.

How Do You Prove That a Medication Caused Harm?

If you’ve suffered after taking a medication, you might find yourself asking: “How can I prove it was the drug that caused this?” It’s a fair question—especially when side effects can be delayed, dismissed, or hard to separate from existing conditions.

Under Irish law, pharmaceutical claims fall under a strict liability regime—which means you don’t need to prove that anyone was negligent. But you do need to show that the product was defective, that it caused you harm, and that the two are connected.

Here’s how we help clients build that kind of case:

Medical Records and Timelines

We start by gathering your full medical history, including:

When you started and stopped the medication
When symptoms or complications began
What follow-up treatment was required

We look at your GP notes, hospital discharge summaries, prescriptions, and consultant letters. These records help create a timeline showing that your symptoms emerged only after exposure to the drug.

This is crucial—even if you had other health issues beforehand, the question becomes: Did this specific medication make things worse in a way that wasn’t expected or explained?

Batch and Product Information

If you still have the original packaging, leaflet, or a dispensing sticker on your prescription bag, keep it safe. This can help identify:

The exact batch number
The manufacturer or distributor
Any known issues with that batch (e.g. HPRA warnings or product recalls)

Even without packaging, we can often retrieve this information through your pharmacist, especially if you know the pharmacy and approximate dispensing date.

Expert Medical Review

In many cases, we’ll seek an expert opinion from a medical consultant. They will examine your records and give an independent view on whether your injury was likely caused by the medication.

Their role isn’t just to confirm your symptoms—but to assess whether they are consistent with known drug reactions, interaction risks, or documented side effects that may not have been properly disclosed.

Their insight helps build the medical foundation of your claim—and gives weight to your lived experience.

National and International Safety Reports

If the drug has been associated with other adverse reports—either in Ireland or internationally—we can use that information to strengthen your case. Sources may include:

HPRA (Health Products Regulatory Authority)
EMA (European Medicines Agency)
WHO or FDA safety bulletins

These reports may show that the manufacturer knew—or should have known—about the risks, especially if they were slow to act.

Witnesses and Family Accounts

Sometimes the people closest to you are the best proof. A family member, carer, or friend may have noticed dramatic changes in your health after starting a new medication. Their written statements can support your account and help establish credibility, especially in cases involving cognitive or psychological effects.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I bring a claim if the medicine was prescribed by my GP?

Yes. A claim involving a defective or dangerous medicine is usually made against the manufacturer or distributor, not your doctor. GPs prescribe based on approved products and trusted guidance. If the medicine turned out to be unsafe or incorrectly labelled, the issue likely lies with the producer or pharmacy—not your GP. These claims are based on product safety, not medical negligence, so you’re not accusing your doctor of wrongdoing by seeking legal advice.

What if I don’t have the packaging or prescription receipt?

You can still bring a claim. While packaging and batch information are helpful, they’re not always essential. We can often obtain the relevant details directly from your pharmacy records, including the product name, dosage, and dispensing date. Your medical records will also support your claim, showing when the drug was prescribed and how your symptoms developed. So don’t worry if the box or label is long gone—there are still ways to prove your case.

Is it still possible to claim if the side effects appeared months later?

Yes. Many pharmaceutical injuries develop slowly over time. You may not realise straight away that the medication is causing harm—especially if symptoms overlap with an existing condition. What matters is when you became aware—or should have become aware—that the drug was responsible. That’s when your time limit to claim begins. As long as you’re within that legal window (usually three years from discovery), you may still be entitled to bring a case.

Can I claim if the medication hasn’t been officially recalled?

Yes. A recall helps support a claim, but it’s not required. Many defective or dangerous drugs are only recalled after a large number of people report harm—and some are never recalled at all. If you’ve suffered serious side effects, had to stop the medication early, or required further treatment, your experience still counts. A solicitor can investigate whether the product was defective, even if it’s still available on the market.

Can I make a claim on behalf of a loved one who was affected or passed away?

In many cases, yes. If a family member suffered serious harm or died as a result of taking a dangerous medication, you may be able to bring a claim on their behalf—especially if you’re their next of kin or legal representative. This can help cover medical expenses, funeral costs, and the broader impact on your family. We’ll handle this process with care and respect, and guide you through it step by step.

Speak to a Local Solicitor Who Understands What You’re Going Through

If you believe a medication has caused you harm, don’t sit with the worry alone. At John O’Leary Solicitors LLP, you’ll speak directly with a trusted local solicitor—someone who will listen, explain your options clearly, and guide you at your own pace. We’ve been supporting individuals and families across Tallaght and Dublin for over 20 years, and we’re here when you’re ready. Phone, email, or visit our office to get the help you deserve.