Anne Bucher  |  September 22, 2017

Category: Consumer News

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Close-up Photo Of An Empty Opened DishwasherOn Tuesday, KitchenAid Inc. was hit with a class action lawsuit alleging some of its dishwashers contain a defect that causes the upper rack assembly to collapse suddenly and unexpectedly, causing property damage and creating a risk of injury.

Plaintiffs James Bodley and Kyle Matson allege the heat generated by the KitchenAid dishwasher causes the plastic components of the upper rack assembly to become brittle and break, causing the rack to collapse.

“The failure of the upper rack assembly results in property damage and creates an unreasonable risk of personal injury because the upper rack assembly fails without warning … causing dishware and glassware to shatter and break,” the KitchenAid dishwasher class action lawsuit alleges.

The KitchenAid dishwashers will not operate without a working top rack assembly, the plaintiffs say. Because the component part of the top rack assembly cannot be repaired, consumers must pay to replace the assembly in order to restore the functionality of their KitchenAid dishwashers, according to the dishwasher defect class action lawsuit.

Replacement rack assemblies cost between $25 and $50 plus labor costs to install the assembly, the KitchenAid class action lawsuit alleges. KitchenAid has reportedly refused to pay for the repairs even when the upper dish rack failure occurs during the warranty period.

Bodley and Matson assert that KitchenAid has known that the upper rack assembly was defective since at least 2011 but failed to disclose the defect to consumers. The plaintiffs claim they would not have purchased a KitchenAid dishwasher if they had known about the upper rack defect.

“Despite notice of the defect from hundreds of customer complaints, KitchenAid has not recalled the dishwashers to repair the defect and when asked, has refused to pay for the parts and labor associated with removing and replacing the defective rack assembly,” the KitchenAid dishwasher defect class action lawsuit says.

The plaintiffs filed the KitchenAid class action lawsuit on behalf of themselves and a proposed Class of consumers in the United States who purchased a KitchenAid dishwasher, or who purchased a private residence with a KitchenAid dishwasher, with an upper rack assembly bearing part number W10350375 and W10350376. In addition to the nationwide Class, they also seek to represent a California Class and two California subclasses.

The KitchenAid class action lawsuit asserts violations of the California Consumer Legal Remedies Act, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty, and violations of California’s Unfair Competition Law. The plaintiffs are seeking compensatory damages, restitution and/or disgorgement, exemplary and punitive damages, attorneys’ fees and costs, and other damages deemed appropriate by the court. They have also asked the court to order KitchenAid to implement a notice and/or recall campaign for the allegedly defective dishwasher racks.

Bodley and Matson are represented by David M. Birka-White and Mindy M. Wong of Birka-White Law Offices and N. Scott Carpenter and Rebecca Bell-Stanton of Carpenter & Schumacher PC.

The KitchenAid Dishwasher Rack Defect Class Action Lawsuit is James Bodley and Kyle Matson v. KitchenAid Inc., et al., Case No. 3:17-cv-05436-LB, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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32 thoughts onKitchenAid Class Action: Dishwasher Rack Prone to Premature Failure

  1. Bobbi Pigman says:

    I too have the same rack problem what do we do

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