North Chicago & St. Louis Injury Updates
Chicago homeowners use their air conditioning unit to cool down their homes in the summer heat. The last thing they want it to do is catch their houses on fire. A Texas homeowner claims that his air conditioner’s internal wires overheated due to a defect in December 2011, causing his home to catch fire and suffer considerable damage.
The man, from Port Neches, Texas, filed a product liability lawsuit against Carrier Corp. in Jefferson County District Court in March. He claims that the A/C condenser unit’s control box, located outside his home, had a defect that caused the wires to overheat. This started a fire, which caused damage to the home. The Arcoaire condenser unit was designed and manufactured by Carrier Corp.
The lawsuit has recently been moved to the federal court. Carrier Corp. removed the lawsuit and it is now in the hands of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. The man is claiming living expenses and actual damages. The amount is for more than $200,000 but less than $1 million.
Defective products can cause serious injuries to consumers. In extreme cases, death can even occur. When a product causes a house to catch fire, that’s a serious issue. Replacing a home – even a small portion of it – is a costly proposition. The man is within his legal right to seek compensation for the damage the air conditioner unit caused to his home.
Manufacturers have a duty to produce quality products that keep consumers safe. Even when products are rigorously tested, defects can still occur, unfortunately. When consumers are injured, they may wish to seek legal action against the manufacturer. Depending on the amount of damage caused, product liability lawsuits can sometimes provide large sums of compensation to victims. This compensation can pay for medical bills and other damages.
Source:
The Southeast Texas Record, “Suit alleging defective A/C caused house fire removed to federal court” David Yates, Sep. 13, 2013