Courtney Jorstad  |  March 5, 2015

Category: Consumer News

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frigidaire-microwaveElectrolux Home Products, Inc. was hit with a class action lawsuit alleging that the handles on its over-the-range microwaves reach high temperatures that are capable of burning users when the cooking surface underneath the microwave is in use.

Plaintiff Elaine Rice alleges in her Feb. 18 Electrolux class action lawsuit filed in a Pennsylvania federal court that the “stainless steel handle . . . contains a uniform latent design defect when used for its intended purpose,” and she claims that it is capable of burning users, making it “unreasonably dangerous.”

Rice says that she owns a Frigidaire Gallery Over-the-Range Microwave Oven, which is made by Electrolux. She says that the Frigidaire microwave that she purchased at Lowe’s Home Centers, Inc. in October 2013 for $269.10 was properly installed, according to company instructions. She also claims that she paid $180 to have the microwave oven installed.

“The surface temperature of Plaintiff Rice’s Microwave handle was measured with a pot of boiling water on the stovetop,” the class action lawsuit states. “When the water came to a boil, the surface temperature of the handle reached a maximum of 168.12°F.”

“This handle defect is unreasonably dangerous, as it can result, and has resulted, in injury to Plaintiff Rice and to consumers, including burns to the skin,” she explained further.

Rice claims that shortly after the microwave oven was installed “she suffered a burn on her hand due to the exceedingly high temperature of the stainless steel handle of the microwave.”

Rice called the Electrolux customer service number to complain about the defect and an Electrolux serve representative came to her home to inspect the microwave oven and determined that the “microwave is located too close in proximity to her cooking range.”

The inspector said that the microwave’s base is supposed to be 30 inches from the surface of the oven, but Rice says that the installation instructions say that the top of the microwave should be at least 30 inches from the surface of the oven.

Rice says in the Frigidaire over-the-range microwave class action lawsuit that she filed a claim with Electrolux on Jan. 21, 2014 according to the microwave’s warranty, but that her claim was denied on Feb. 28, 2014.

According to the class action lawsuit, the only way for someone to open the Frigidaire microwave at issue is with the handle.

“The handle is designed for use with a bare hand, and a consumer’s reasonable expectation is that the handle to the microwave can be touched without risk of burning or other serious injury,” the Frigidaire class action lawsuit states.

She alleges that the stainless steel handle “can reach temperatures in excess of 168°F in minutes, which is dangerous to consumers.”

The Frigidaire class action lawsuit cites the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), which says that “skin contact with metallic surfaces at such temperatures can result in irreversible skin damage.”

The Frigidaire microwave class action lawsuit is charging Electrolux  with “strict liability-design defect and failure to warn on behalf, negligent failure to warn, violations of the Magnuson-Moss Consumer Products Warranties Act, breach of implied warranty of merchantability, breach of express warranty, and unjust enrichment.

Rice is seeking to represent a nationwide class, a Pennsylvania subclass and a multi-state subclass including 34 states and the District of Columbia.

The plaintiff is represented by Joseph G. Price, Sean P. McDonough, and Paul T. Oven of Dougherty Leventhal & Price, LLP, and by Simon Bahne Paris, Patrick Howard, and Charles J. Kocher of Saltz, Mongeluzzi, Barrett & Bendesky, P.C.

There is no attorney information available for Electrolux at this time.

The Frigidaire Microwave Class Action Lawsuit is Elaine Rice v. Electrolux Home Products, Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania – Scranton.

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One thought on Frigidaire Microwave Handles Can Cause Burns, Class Action Lawsuit Says

  1. Jamie Thomas says:

    This is so true. My handle gets so hot my poor thumb always burns. Worst microwave ever!

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