Whirlpool KitchenAid Self-Cleaning Oven Class Action Lawsuit

A federal class action lawsuit filed in New York claims Whirlpool KitchenAid self-cleaning ovens not only break in as little as two cleaning cycles, but that using the self-cleaning cycle five or six times “damages the ovens beyond repair.”

According to the Whirlpool KitchenAid class action lawsuit, “The Ovens feature a self-cleaning capability that, upon the first or second use, damages the control panel as a result of excessive heat, requiring costly repairs in order to begin reusing the Oven. After the fifth or sixth use of the self-cleaning cycle, the heat from the self-cleaning cycle damages the control panel beyond repair.”

Whirlpool sells these defective KitchenAid self-cleaning ovens at major U.S. retailers, including Home Depot, Sears and P.C. Richard & Sons, with a one-year factory warranty for parts and labor and a five-year warranty for specified parts if they become defective because of workmanship. These warranties are virtually useless, the class action lawsuit claims, because “the damage resulting from the self-cleaning cycle is not covered by the 5-year warranty” and “consumers often do not use the self-cleaning feature during the first year, since the Oven has not yet been heavily used and dirtied.”

The KitchenAid class action lawsuit claims Whirlpool knew about the serious nature of the defective KitchenAid self-cleaning ovens that required costly repairs and ultimately result in the destruction of the oven, yet continued to sell the ovens. Numerous customers have alerted Whirlpool about the problems with the KitchenAid self-cleaning cycle, yet “to this day, [Whirlpool] continues to conceal material information from users, consumer, and the public.”

The Whirlpool KitchenAid class action lawsuit is brought on behalf anyone who purchased a KitchenAid self-cleaning oven on or after June 3, 2008 at retail price for personal use in the State of New York. It is seeking class certification, refunds to class members, compensatory and other damages, and an order requiring Whirlpool to immediately cease its wrongful conduct and enjoin it from continuing to conceal the defect.

A copy of the Whirlpool KitchenAid Defective Self-Cleaning Oven Class Action Lawsuit can be read here.

The case is Richard Wolfson vs. Whirlpool Corporation in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

UPDATE: The Whirlpool KitchenAid Defective Self-Cleaning Oven Class Action Lawsuit was dismissed on June 27, 2012.