Stovetops turned on by themselves and sparked fires, feds say. Now Whirlpool must pay
Whirlpool exposed customers to an “unreasonable risk of serious injury” after failing to warn about faulty stovetops that turned on by themselves, federal officials say.
Now the Michigan-based appliance manufacturer must pay.
The $11.5 million settlement follows dozens of consumer complaints received between November 2017 and 2019 that included at least four reports of objects catching fire, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Officials say Whirlpool was aware of a dangerous defect in select models of its JennAir, KitchenAid and Whirlpool brand glass cooktops “that could create a substantial product hazard.”
Yet, it failed to immediately report the issue, according to the commission.
“Whirlpool had received at least 157 reports of the cooktops turning on by themselves, including 14 reports of property damage, four reports of objects igniting and two reports of minor burns,” officials said in a news release.
In a statement to McClatchy News,Whirlpool said it alerted the CPSC “promptly after first identifying the risk” caused by the faulty cooktops.
“Despite these diligent efforts, the CPSC chose to investigate the timeliness of the company’s initial reporting of the issue and pursued a civil penalty against the Whirlpool Corp.,” the company said. “Despite the decision to settle this issue with the CPSC, Whirlpool Corp. maintains that the company acted appropriately once the issue was identified.”
A search on SaferProducts. gov, where the public can report unsafe products, shows the commission received complaints about the Whirlpool cooktops as recently as this year, according to its website.
A 74-year-old reported an “unspecified injury” but treated it with first aid, according to a complaint from January.
The Whirlpool and the CPSC announced a voluntary recall of the cooktops back in 2019, citing burn and fire hazards. Customers were advised to order a replacement.
“On two occasions my whirlpool cooktop ... has turned on by itself,” another customer wrote in a complaint dated Sept. 13, 2019. “The first time it melted a coffee maker and the 2nd time it melted my wife’s laptop computer.”
Under the terms of the settlement, Whirlpool agreed to improve internal controls and procedures to comply with the Consumer Product Safety Act, the release said. The manufacturer must also submit annual reports on its compliance policies and procedures for the next three years.
This story was originally published August 25, 2023 at 5:17 PM with the headline "Stovetops turned on by themselves and sparked fires, feds say. Now Whirlpool must pay."