Samsung Class Action: Wall Mount Defect Causes TVs to Fall

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Samsung Electronics America Inc. has been hit with a class action lawsuit that accuses it of selling defective wall mounts that fail and cause televisions to fall to the floor.

Plaintiff Cindy Coleman-Anacleto alleges that Samsung has been manufacturing a line of “Ultra Slim” wall mounts that are not visible when they are installed to support flat-panel televisions.

According to the class action lawsuit, Samsung designed the Ultra Slim wall mount to appeal to consumers’ aesthetic preference for televisions that were mounted on the wall without any visible brackets.

These Ultra Slim mounts involve two load-bearing metal disks that are mounted directly onto the wall and two plastic disks connected together by a pre-installed metal cable.

These plastic disks screw onto the back of the television, and the television can then be mounted to the wall by hanging the cable on the wall-mounted metal disks. According to the Samsung class action lawsuit, this system of securing the television to the wall is similar to the way one hangs a picture frame.

Coleman-Anacleto claims that Samsung sells several models of Ultra Slim mounts that are designed to be used with different televisions. According to the Samsung class action lawsuit, the packaging for each Ultra Slim model indicates which Samsung TV are compatible with it. The packaging also reportedly indicates the “Safe Working Load” and “Minimum Breaking Load” of the wall mount.

However, the Samsung Ultra Slim mounts are plagued by a design defect that results in the television falling to the floor, the Samsung class action lawsuit alleges.

“The plastic disks that connect to the metal cable break under the regular pressure of holding a Samsung television of the appropriate weight and size, as stated on the package,” Coleman-Anacleto states in the Samsung class action lawsuit.

After the plastic disk breaks, the metal cable slips out of it and causes the television to fall off the wall, endangering unsuspecting consumers who are nearby, the Samsung class action lawsuit alleges. Children are at particular risk of injury due to falling TVs, Coleman-Anacleto says.

The plaintiff claims she paid $3,200 for a 63-inch plasma Samsung television in 2010, and used an Ultra Slim wall mount to secure it to a wall in her home. In January 2016, her Samsung TV reportedly fell off the wall, causing the screen to shatter. She noticed that one of the plastic disks attached to the back of her TV had broken and caused the metal cable to slip out so that it no longer supported the TV.

According to the Samsung class action lawsuit, Coleman-Anacleto reported the issue to Samsung but the company refused to repair the TV or pay for the full cost of repairing the TV.

By filing the Samsung class action lawsuit, Coleman-Anacleto seeks to represent a Class of consumers who purchased a Samsung Ultra Slim wall mount in California. She wants Samsung to disclose that these wall mounts are prone to failure, posing a safety risk.

She also wants the company to reimburse Class Members for the property damage or injuries they suffered due to wall mount failure, and to repair or replace Class Members’ TVs that were damaged due to the wall mount failure.

Coleman-Anacleto is represented by Eric H. Gibbs, Dylan Hughes and Steve Lopez of Girard Gibbs LLP.

The Samsung Ultra Slim Wall Mount Class Action Lawsuit is Cindy Coleman-Anacleto v. Samsung Electronics America Inc., Case No. 16-cv-294533, in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Santa Clara.