Target, Jetson Electric Bikes reach $38.5M settlement in hoverboard deaths lawsuit

Target settlement overview: 

• Who: Target Corp. and Jetson Electric Bikes agreed to a $38.5 million settlement with the family of two deceased Pennsylvania girls. 
• Why: The lithium ion battery in a 42-volt Jetson Rogue hoverboard started a fire that led to the death of the two girls, the Hellertown Borough Fire Marshal determined.
• Where: The Jetson Electric Bikes settlement was reached in Pennsylvania federal court.

Target Corp. and Jetson Electric Bikes agreed to a $38.5 million settlement to a hoverboard deaths lawsuit.

The lawsuit had been filed by the family of 15-year-old Brianna Baer and 10-year-old Abigail Kaufman. The two sisters died when the lithium ion battery in a Jetson Rogue hoverboard started a fire in their Hellertown, Pennsylvania, home. Their deaths led to Jetson Electric Bikes recalling more than 50,000 self-balancing hoverboard products due to a fire risk.

“The Hellertown Borough Fire Marshal determined that a 42-volt Jetson Rogue was the point of origin of the fire,” the recall said. “The fire then spread from the room of origin to other portions of the house, resulting in the deaths of the two girls and smoke inhalation injuries to the girls’ parents. The cause of the fire remains undetermined.”

The Jetson Electric Bikes settlement includes $15.6 million to attorneys at Klein and Specter P.C. for attorney’s fees and costs, an amount equal to 40% of the total settlement.

Target settlement includes $9.2M for each fire victim

The settlement includes $22.9 million in net distribution related to the hoverboard deaths, including nearly $9.2 million each for Brianna and Abigail’s deaths.

Abigail was the daughter of Jennifer Lee Kaufman and Damien Kaufman; Brianna was Jennifer Lee Kaufman’s daughter from a previous marriage, The Express-Times in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley reported after the fire.

The settlement grants $4.6 million apiece to Jennifer Lee Kaufman and Damien Kaufman for Abigail’s death, while Jennifer Lee Kaufman will receive the entire $9.2 million amount for Brianna’s death.

U.S. District Court Judge Joseph F. Leeson, Jr. approved the settlement and closed the case in a Feb. 16 order.

Were you affected by the Jetson Electric Bikes hoverboard recall? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Thomas R. Kline, Aaron L. Dunbar, Charles L. Becker and John P. O’Neil of Kline and Specter PC and Latisha M. Bernard of Barley Snyder LLP.

The Target settlement is Kaufman, et al. v. Jetson Electric Bikes LLC, et al., Case No. 5:22-cv-03765-JFL, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

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