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Adidas America, Inc. was hit with a class action lawsuit in a New York federal court alleging that the Adidas SpringBlade running shoe is defective and it literally comes apart.
New York resident and plaintiff Edward Ruffo, explains in his Adidas class action lawsuit that the SpringBlade running shoe is supposed to be different compared to the typical running shoe.
“Most traditional running shoes feature an EVA midsole that vertically delivers energy return,” Ruffo explains in his class action lawsuit.
“In contrast, the Adidas SpringBlade running shoe features 16 forward angled blades made out of high-tech polymer. The elastic blades purportedly react to any environment, compressing and releasing energy to create an efficient, springy push-off. The supposed benefit of the SpringBlade is the concept of energy,” the Adidas running shoe class action lawsuit says.
The SpringBlade, which costs $180-$200 per pair, was marketed as a running shoe that contained “explosive” energy, which was supposed to “enhance the running experience.”
However, Ruffo claims that “despite six years of development and extensive marketing efforts to the general public, the sole of the SpringBlade was defectively designed and manufactured.”
Because of the way the shoe is designed, “the sole of the shoe is prone to failure.”
The Adidas SpringBlade class action lawsuit claims that when a person walks and runs while wearing the shoe, “the midsole is loaded and unloaded while flexing in multiple directions.” However, it is “these stresses to the shoe” that “are inherently trying to pull the components of the shoe apart.”
Ruffo says that “the design failure in question is at a location where two pieces of semi-rigid plastic are bonded together, which is especially problematic and prone to delamination.”
The New York man says that he bought more than one pair of the SpringBlade running shoes at Dick’s Sporting Goods and online at both Adidas.com and Amazon.com after he saw the marketing campaign for the shoes and read reviews in different publications.
“However, after only a few days of use limited to running on a treadmill, the sole of each pair of the plaintiff’s SpringBlades failed at the bonding between the two semi-rigid components at the forefoot flex area,” he claims in his Adidas SpringBlade class action lawsuit.
He says that he bought several pairs, which he only used when running on a treadmill. Ruffo also bought another pair to use when running outside.
“Unfortunately, the soles of every single pair of SpringBlades that plaintiff purchased failed at the bonding between the two semi-rigid components at the forefoot flex area,” the class action lawsuit says. In fact, the pair he bought to use outside “failed after a single use.”
Adidas has redesigned the SpringBlade, which it now sells as the SpringBlade Ignite. Ruffo claims that the shoe was redesigned “due to consumer complaints of sole delamination at the midfoot in SpringBlades.” The new SpringBlade sells for $129.99.
Ruffo is looking to represent a nationwide class and a New York subclass of individuals who bought the first model SpringBlade running shoes.
He is charging Adidas with breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty, unjust enrichment, violating New York’s Deceptive Acts and Practices Act as well as consumer protection acts in other states, and violating Oregon’s Unlawful Trade Practices Act.
Ruffo is represented by Thomas Peter Guiffra of Rheingold Valet Rheingold McCartney & Giuffra LLP.
Counsel information for Adidas is not yet available.
The Adidas SpringBlade Class Action Lawsuit is Edward A. Ruffo v. Adidas America Inc., Case No. 1:15-cv-05989, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
UPDATE: On Sept. 2, 2016, Adidas won its bid to deny certification of a nationwide Class of consumers who allege the company’s Springblade sneakers are defective and fall apart after one or two uses.
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56 thoughts onClass Action: Adidas SpringBlade Running Shoes Come Apart
Same as everyone else in this post. after wearing mine four to five times they split at the joint. I’ve had mine a few years but, as I own close to one hundred pair of sneakers I don’t wear them often to keep them looking nice. Well, they are still nice looking for useless sneakers:(
Purchased 1st generation Adidas spring blades from Harrodsburg of London, only had occasional use and only ever on a treadmill
Centre sole split
Totally unfit for purpose
Adidas are aware of this issue and should look toward compensating consumers.
Has anyone found any satisfactory trade off for these defective shoes, I have been holding mine hoping for some kind of resolution. Wore one time and cracked. Can they be traded, or sent in for credit ?
Same here. I have the spring blades 1 and spring blade 2. Both have come apart after merely bending down at the knees. For as expensive as they were these are the worst shoes I’ve ever owned. And I use to wear VOIT and MCGREGOR as a child…..
Same here I just bought one for my husband and it came apart in the middle after the second wear
Hallo aus Wien
Ich habe mehrere Springblade ,blau, schwarz Gold alle bei Amazon de.gekauft.
Alle nach der Garantie nach 1 Jahr daß selbe Problem . Wäre es früher geschehen ich hätte sie umgetauscht.
yeah i just pulled my ,ackiles tendon, sprained my ankle and am sitting home cant work, im screwed, just bought mine no more than 4 months ago, wore them twice and the first time i go to the gym doing sprints on basketball court the sole almost came of more than halfway and im seriously injured, this is crazy, help!
I have 3 pairs and only wore one time and they came apart i have pictures of them
Same problem with my springblades i bought off ebay!
Wore them once and both bottoms cracked in the middle.
I didnt contact adidas but reading all your comments it dosent sound like it will do much good. Please help….. AH
The case is still moving through the courts and has not yet reached a settlement. Claim forms are usually not made available to consumers until after a court approved settlement is reached. We recommend you sign up for a free account at TopClassActions.com and follow the case. We will update the article with any major case developments or settlement news! Setting up a free account with Top Class Actions will allow you to receive instant updates on ANY article that you ‘Follow’ on our website. A link to creating an account may be found here: https://topclassactions.com/signup/. You can then ‘Follow’ the article above, and get notified immediately when we post updates!
I wore my spring blades only 1 day and they broke in half at the bottom in only 4 hours of use of only walking in them. Adidas doesn’t care to help you either. If you message them, they want a receipt and the manufacture date on the shoes. If the date is older then 2 years and no receipt, they ignore you. If you provide a Receipt, They then tell you if manufacture date is over 2 years, they only give you half the amount on a gift card. Receipt is with 1 year too, Then they Ignore you. Clear Violation of Fair business practices. Nowhere on their site does it say they care about the Customer. Their focus is on money and how they can get more of it (you can go read for yourself). You are a “Consumer” and deal with “Consumer Relations”. If you can’t draw the lines and make the connections, Don’t Cows Consume as well?
Same problem with my Springblade please help
Cracked in middle both shoes in a week
UPDATE: On Sept. 2, 2016, Adidas won its bid to deny certification of a nationwide Class of consumers who allege the company’s Springblade sneakers are defective and fall apart after one or two uses.
I have 4pairs of springblades. 3 of them have cracked. Pissed me off after buying them from finish line. I love the sneaks and I get compliments all the time on them.
gorilla glue bub