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A class action lawsuit is taking on furniture retailer Ashley Furniture over claims that its DuraBlend upholstery fails to hold up under ordinary use.
Plaintiff Sladjana Perisic of Florida is accusing Ashley Furniture Industries Inc. of violating Florida consumer protection laws with its DuraBlend upholstery, a hybrid of synthetic and natural materials made to mimic the appearance of leather.
She says Ashley Furniture “falsely, deceptively or misleadingly promoted, marketed, advertised, and sold furniture with DuraBlend” as if it were a high-quality, durable product. But in fact, she claims, DuraBlend upholstery starts to peel and fall apart soon after being exposed to normal wear and tear.
According to this Ashley Furniture class action lawsuit, DuraBlend is marketed as “blended leather,” which Perisic says is synonymous with “bonded leather.” Bonded leather consists of scraps of animal hide adhered together and covered with layers of polish and other materials to give it the appearance of a single piece of leather.
Perisic quotes an article on the subject from Consumer Affairs that says “the true difference between bonded and genuine leather is its durability,” a detail that many retailers allegedly fail to mention to their customers.
The plaintiff says that in August 2013 she purchased a DuraBlend-upholstered sofa, loveseat and recliner from an Ashley Furniture store in Pinellas Park, Fla., at a cost of about $1,700. She says the promotional material for that furniture said its DuraBlend upholstery was “as durable as leather.”
But by early 2016, she claims, the upholstery had started “bubbling and peeling.” The top leather-like layer on the cushions and arm rests allegedly began to peel away, exposing the coarse, off-white material underneath.
Perisic says she made a claim under the furniture protection plan she had purchased from the Guardsman company. Guardsman denied that claim, stating that the damage to her furniture was a manufacturing defect, the class action lawsuit states.
The plaintiff says she paid a premium to Ashley Furniture based on its representations that DuraBlend upholstery was as durable as leather. Had she known that DuraBlend would fail to hold up under ordinary use, Perisic says she either would not have purchased it or would have been willing to pay significantly less for it.
Perisic proposes to represent a plaintiff Class consisting of all persons who purchased furniture with DuraBlend upholstery from Ashley Furniture in the State of Florida. She expects Class Members will number in the thousands.
She is seeking an order from the court that would require Ashley Furniture to conform its marketing of DuraBlend upholstery to applicable legal requirements. She also seeks an award of actual, incidental, statutory and punitive damages and reimbursement of her attorney’s fees and court costs, with interest.
Perisic is represented by Julie Braman Kane and Stephanie A. Casey of Colson Hicks Eidson PA, and by Mike Arias and Mikael H. Stahle of Arias Sanguinetti Stahle & Torrijos LLP.
The Ashley Furniture DuraBlend Defective Product Class Action Lawsuit is Sladjana Perisic v. Ashley Furniture Industries Inc., Case No. 8:16-cv-03255, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.
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228 thoughts onAshley Furniture Class Action Says DuraBlend Upholstery Falls Apart
I have the same issue. My coich started peeling over the simmer..i originally thought one of my kids pit put something on it. Once I looked into this issue I found it was common. Like everyone else I was told durablend qas betyer than leather especially with small kids. That was a lie.
. I contacted Ashley by email but haven’t heard back. How can I join the class action siit?? Who can I contact to jelp with thiw matter ?
My Durablend Couch and Live seat have hardly been used and almost over night it has started to crack and peel for no reason
we bought a recliner 2 years ago and took out the extended coverage. it is leather(fake) peeling on the arms and back. called Ashly and they are going to replace the arm’s and back of the chair.?? my thoughts why don’t they just replace the whole chair???? They told us the extended coverage was only for accidents on the chair not use???? we are old the chair didn’t get that much use in 2 years. I have had my other furniture for 25 years and it doesn’t look used or peel.????
Bought the sofa & loveseat in 2012. Started peeling off in 2015. Unfortunately the store I bought it from and complained to has closed now. Have all original receipts. Hoping that the company is rightfully punished for this false advertisement & poor quality product.
We got a 3000 dollar couch and were told this was leather and it is peeling off with normal use. I have reached out to the warranty company and nothing. This is complete crap and it hasn’t even been at my house for that long.
if you pay with credit card contact them to dispute it
I purchased Love Seat Chair and Sectional in 2010 is Awful Peeling
if you pay with credit card contact them to dispute it
I bought a sectional and a recliner in November ,2016 and now in Feb 2018 the bonded leather starts pealing off.
I contacted Ashley many times on this and the extended warranty i purchased, the warranty tram says they will not cover this damage. I contacted Ashey again many times and finally got the replacement part for one Arm of recliner and an arm of sectional. But meanwhile the other arm of recliner is pealing off now. Also the replacement of the part is costing me out of pocket money as they do not provide these upholstery service.
Ashley made me sign a document before mailing the replacement part that I will not be filing any claim on this. I was unaware of this suite till now and don’t know what to do. Need help.
I live in IL. I purchased from Ashley in 2012 and within 2 years it began to peal. When my durablend fell apart I went to Ashley and I bought got the extended warranty. Neither would help me. They did nothing. I looked to see if there were class action suits and at the time – there were none. The issue even made itself on Chicago news!!! How can I be added to the suit?
I stay away from Ashley after Durablend scam!
I filed a claim and got an in store credit but i don’t need any furniture and the employee didn’t want to file my claim anyway because my purchase was in 2012 but i was persistent now i can’t get my money. I was never told Durablend would refund Ashley not the customer. Very upset.
What can i do?