Apple hit with class-action suit after girl drops, breaks iPhone 4's glass
A California man became so angry after his daughter dropped his iPhone 4 and cracked its glass enclosure that he filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple alleging that its most recent handset design is defective.
In the complaint filed earlier this week, Los Angeles resident Donald LeBuhn claims that Apple has known for months that its industrial design of the iPhone 4 is defective but has failed to warn customers that normal use of the device can lead to a broken phone.
More specifically, LeBuhn said that he paid over $250 in September for a new iPhone 4 only to have it rendered essentially useless after his daughter dropped it from a height of roughly three feet while attempting to send a text message.
In the suit, he claims to have owned an iPhone 3GS that fell from a similar height but did not break. As such, he's calling bologna on the Cupertino-based company's marketing claims that the iPhone 4 glass as "20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic," and is "ultradurable" having been made from the same material as the "glass used in helicopters and high-speed trains."
"Months after selling millions of iPhone 4s, Apple has failed to warn and continues to sell this product with no warning to customers that the glass housing is defective," LeBuhn's attorneys wrote in the complaint.
The suit comes a little over three months after third-party warranty provider SquareTrade issued a report stating that in its first four months on market, the iPhone 4 was seeing a reported accident rate that was 68% higher than the iPhone 3GS, primarily the result of broken screens.
A followup report from the same firm a month later claimed that while the iPhone 4 outperformed all other leading smartphones when it came to reported malfunctions, it also appeared to be more accident-prone. As such, SquareTrade projected the handset would have the highest accidental damage rate after 12 months of all smartphones at roughly 13.8 percent, possibly due to its two sides of glass.
Projected iPhone 4 accident rate | Source: SquareTrade
With his lawsuit this month, LeBuhn has asked the court to mandate that Apple refund the purchase price of the iPhone 4 to all similarly situated class members, to reimburse customers for any repair fees they've paid, and to further compensate customers for their "overpayment" in purchasing a defective product.
In the complaint filed earlier this week, Los Angeles resident Donald LeBuhn claims that Apple has known for months that its industrial design of the iPhone 4 is defective but has failed to warn customers that normal use of the device can lead to a broken phone.
More specifically, LeBuhn said that he paid over $250 in September for a new iPhone 4 only to have it rendered essentially useless after his daughter dropped it from a height of roughly three feet while attempting to send a text message.
In the suit, he claims to have owned an iPhone 3GS that fell from a similar height but did not break. As such, he's calling bologna on the Cupertino-based company's marketing claims that the iPhone 4 glass as "20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic," and is "ultradurable" having been made from the same material as the "glass used in helicopters and high-speed trains."
"Months after selling millions of iPhone 4s, Apple has failed to warn and continues to sell this product with no warning to customers that the glass housing is defective," LeBuhn's attorneys wrote in the complaint.
The suit comes a little over three months after third-party warranty provider SquareTrade issued a report stating that in its first four months on market, the iPhone 4 was seeing a reported accident rate that was 68% higher than the iPhone 3GS, primarily the result of broken screens.
A followup report from the same firm a month later claimed that while the iPhone 4 outperformed all other leading smartphones when it came to reported malfunctions, it also appeared to be more accident-prone. As such, SquareTrade projected the handset would have the highest accidental damage rate after 12 months of all smartphones at roughly 13.8 percent, possibly due to its two sides of glass.
Projected iPhone 4 accident rate | Source: SquareTrade
With his lawsuit this month, LeBuhn has asked the court to mandate that Apple refund the purchase price of the iPhone 4 to all similarly situated class members, to reimburse customers for any repair fees they've paid, and to further compensate customers for their "overpayment" in purchasing a defective product.
Comments
Can't see this lawsuit winning. It is glass, it is fragile. If you are a careless bu$$er get a case.
And he should sue his daughter for carelessness.
And he should sue his wife for the bad genes which gave his daughter such weak grip.
And he should sue the government for providing an inadequate education system which allowed him to grow up to be such a moron.
A California man became so angry after his daughter dropped his iPhone 4 and cracked its glass enclosure that he filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple alleging that its most recent handset design is defective
It might be defective now but it wasn't before it got dropped. It is a delicate instrument. If you don't know how to handle it you shouldn't buy one. You can only blame yourself when stuff like that happens.
My house window glass broke after my neighbour's kid accidently kicked the ball in it. I am gonna class action sue window maker because when I had the old window it did not break after I kicked the ball few yeara ago.
What a moron, OMG.
My Waterford Crystal vase broke when the maid knocked it off of the Louis XIV bureau... I'm suing Waterford!!!
The lawsuit is a load of BS, though.
A California man became so angry after his daughter dropped his iPhone 4 and cracked its glass enclosure that he filed a class-action lawsuit against Apple alleging that its most recent handset design is defective. ...
I think the important piece of information that's missing is the nature of the surface the phone was dropped onto.
The case would also hinge on what's considered "normal use." Is it normal use to drop the phone on the ground?
Im still waiting for the 'transparent Aluminum'. Hop to it Apple!
There is hope-
http://www.physorg.com/news167925273.html
If Apple actually claims this, then they are in trouble.
In case this doesn't get laughed out of court, the attorneys will collect many millions in fees, while the rest of us will get stickers saying "Warning! Do not drop consumer electronics."
Honestly, I hate lawyers just like the next guy, but are there truly bottom-feeding attorneys out there stupid enough to think they have a valid case? (pun intended)
Only in America could someone sue another party for a mistake they made and get loads of dosh for it. Reminds me of the person who sued McDonalds because of coffee being hot and won - and countless other such stories. The guy should be ashamed of himself.
After taking an engineering law course, I think the coffee one was rather legitimate.
It wasn't a guy, it was an old lady traveling with her grandson. The car was parked and the lady tried to add cream to her coffee, but the cup slipped and and spilled on her. Her grandson immediately got out of the car and pulled her out and dropped her sweat pants to prevent any more burning, but by that time she already had 2nd and 3rd degree burns to her legs and crotch area.
McDonald's instructed their franchises to serve coffee at a higher than industry standard temperature knowing that it could cause 3rd degree burns in under 10 seconds, while (going from memory here) a 3 degree drop in temperature (it might of been higher, but it was definitely less than 10 degrees) would increase the required exposure time to about a minute. The reason they served coffee at a higher temperature was to save money on coffee beans. They had basically determined that it was cheaper to pay for the occasional lawsuit than to lower the temperature the coffee was served at. The lady was only suing for her medical bills, but was awarded much more because of the deplorable practices McDonald's was engaged in as a corporation.
There are a lot of frivolous lawsuits out there, like the iPhone one, but I'd have to say that the McDonald's coffee one wasn't one of them. Had McDonald's served coffee at the industry standard temperature, that lady would not have been burned nearly as severely. McDonald's knew the risks but corporate greed overruled the safety of its customers.
"20 times stiffer and 30 times harder than plastic," and is "ultradurable" having been made from the same material as the "glass used in helicopters and high-speed trains."
If Apple actually claims this, then they are in trouble.
Why would Apple necessarily be in trouble if the claims made are true? I didn't see where Apple stated that the iPhone was indestructible? You do realize that helicopter windshields also break, right?