Product Liability Lawyer Blog
For quite some time, it has been known that the new Samsung Galaxy Note 7 Smartphones have defective batteries and other components that can result in the devices exploding. This can cause serious personal injury and has caused users to be severely burned. These phones are also not allowed on airplanes, since an explosion on a plane could be catastrophic for hundreds of passengers. Not only can they not be taken as carry on, they cannot be checked in baggage, even if they are powered down. The reason for this is because the battery can explode even when the phone is not on or being operated.
While the company has voluntarily agreed to recall the device and provide users with a refund, for whatever reason, some users are not willing to return the defective smartphones. It seems they would rather run the risk of the phone exploding or bursting into flames in a user’s pocket and are not returning them to Samsung.
According to a recent news report from Phys.org, the company has announced that it will remotely disable all devices, so that users have no choice but to return them. The company retains this ability to disable the phones in case they are stolen. Company personnel and police often call this bricking a phone, since it renders it only useful as a paperweight once it has been deactivated. The company has announced that they have already received around 93 percent of the defective phones, but users still have three percent of the devises and are seemingly not willing to return them pursuant to the recall. When a user turns in their defective phone, if they do not want to accept a full refund, they have the option of taking another Samsung smartphone.
If a consumer product injures you, it is important to speak with an experienced Boston product liability attorney as soon as possible. One of the reasons for this is because these cases often involve large class action lawsuits. When there are cases that span many different jurisdictions, you will still need an experienced attorney in your actual location, but the cases will often be steered into what is known as a multi-district litigation case.
The reason that it is important to seek representation as soon as reasonably possible is because when a class action products liability lawsuit is already in court, the outcome of that case may a affect the outcome of your situation, even if you have not yet filed a case.
As for recall compliance, there is the obvious reason of preventing an injury that it is important to turn the product in immediately, but it is also important should there ever be a products liability lawsuit. This is because these cases often come down to a claim known as failure to warn of a danger. If you were warned about the danger and chose to use the product anyway, the defense might be able to argue that you have assumed the risk, and this could be a bar to recovery.
Call the Boston Jeffrey Glassman Injury Lawyers for a free and confidential appointment — (617) 777-7777.
Additional Resources:
Samsung to disable Note 7 phones in recall effort, December 9, 2016, Phys.org
More Blog Entries:
FDA Announces Testosterone Meds Must Carry Broader Warning, July 7, 2014, Boston Product Liability Lawyers Blog