Google Pixel Speaker Defect Class Action Settles For $7.25M

Google and a group of consumers have reached a $7.25 million settlement to end claims that Google’s Pixel phones have defective microphones and speakers.

The proposed settlement deal was brought before a California federal court on Friday.

Plaintiffs Patricia Weeks and Waleed Anbar expressed approval of the Google class action settlement, saying that continuing to litigate the issue would be expensive and risky, whereas accepting a settlement deal offered compensation to consumers.

The Google Pixel phone class action lawsuit was filed by Weeks and Anbar in February 2018. The two consumers argued that the Google Pixel phones made before early 2017 possess defective microphones.

Allegedly, this problem prevents consumers from making phone calls, or making voice commands via Google Assistant and other features.

The plaintiffs claim that Google was aware of the defect but sold the phones nonetheless. They say that Google did not provide consumers whose phones were affected by the defect with a replacement or refund for their defective phones.

Allegedly, Google put its own profits ahead of the interests of its consumers, and caused Pixel phone owners financial injury by selling them a defective product. Consumers say that they lost money because had they known that the phones were defective, they would not have purchased them at all or would not have paid as much for them as they did.

Under the proposed settlement deal, Google will establish a settlement account of $7.25 million, which will be run by a settlement administrator. 

The Google Pixel class action settlement also allocates up to $5,000 in awards for each Class representative.

Class Members will be divided into four groups. Those who did not report a defect with their Pixel phone will be eligible to receive up to $20. Consumers who did make a claim regarding the defect and had to pay an insurance deductible on their phone will have their deductible reimbursed in full.

Those who reported one instance of the microphone defect will be eligible to receive up to $350, and people who experienced the defect multiple times will be eligible for up to $500.

The Google Pixel defect class action lawsuit is not the first smartphone defect class action lawsuit that Google has had to face recently. Consumers also claimed that Nexus 6P smartphones possess a defect that would cause them to boot up at random, and would cause their battery to drain.

Google settled these claims for $9.75 million in April.

Top Class Actions will post updates to this class action settlement as they become available. For the latest updates, keep checking TopClassActions.com or sign up for our free newsletter. You can also receive notifications when this article is updated by using your free Top Class Actions account and clicking the “Follow Article” button at the top of the post.

Weeks and Anbar are represented by Daniel C. Girard, Jordan Elias, Adam E. Polk and Simon S. Grille of Girard Sharp LLP and Benjamin F. Johns, Andrew W. Ferich, Zachary P. Beatty and Beena M. McDonald of Chimicles Schwartz Kriner & Donaldson-Smith LLP.

The Google Pixel Phone Class Action Lawsuit is Patricia Weeks and Waleed Anbar v. Google LLC, Case No. 5:18-cv-00801, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, San Jose Division.
UPDATE: August 2019, the Google Pixel speaker defect class action settlement is now open.Click here to file a claim.

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