Cathy Jo Thomson and Donald Fred Thomson, Individually and On Behalf of All Others Similarly Situated v. Volvo Car North America, LLC, and Volvo Car USA, LLC

District Court, D. New Jersey·Decided September 10, 2026·No. 2:25-cv-17193·Unknown

Opinion

NOT FOR PUBLICATION UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY

CATHY JO THOMSON and DONALD FRED THOMSON, Individually and On Behalf of All Others Similarly Situated, Civil Action No. 25-17193 Plaintiffs, OPINION v. September 10, 2026 VOLVO CAR NORTH AMERICA, LLC, and VOLVO CAR USA, LLC, Defendants. SEMPER, District Judge. THIS MATTER comes before the Court on Defendants Volvo Car North America, LLC (“VCNA”) and Volvo Car USA, LLC's (“VCUSA”) (collectively, “Defendants”) Motion to Dismiss Plaintiffs Cathy Jo Thomson and Donald Fred Thomson’s (collectively, “Plaintiffs”)

Class Action Complaint. (ECF 1, “Class Action Complaint” or “CAC”; ECF 10, “Motion” or “Mot.”) Plaintiffs opposed the Motion. (ECF 15, “Opposition” or “Opp.”) Defendants filed a reply. (ECF 17, “Reply.”) The Court has decided this Motion upon the submissions of the parties and oral argument pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 78 and Local Civil Rule 78.1. For the reasons stated below, Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss is GRANTED. Plaintiffs’ Class Action Complaint is DISMISSED without prejudice. I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND AND PROCEDURAL HISTORY1 This nationwide class action arises out of two alleged design defects in vehicles designed, manufactured, and sold by Defendants. (CAC ¶ 1.) The Court only summarizes the facts necessary to resolve the current Motion.

Plaintiffs Cathy Jo Thomson (“Ms. Thomson”) and Donald Fred Thomson (“Mr. Thomson”) are residents of Kansas and lessees of two 2024 Volvo C40 Recharge Pure Electric vehicles. (Id. ¶¶ 10-11.) Plaintiffs leased their two vehicles on January 31, 2025 from Premier Volvo Cars in Overland Park, Kansas. (Id. ¶¶ 59, 72.) VCNA and VCUSA are limited liability companies incorporated in Delaware and both maintain their principal place of business in New Jersey. (Id. ¶¶ 14-15.) VCNA is the parent of VCUSA, and serves as Volvo AB’s2 regional operational hub for marketing, brand communications, and warranty program administration in the United States. (Id. ¶ 14.) VCUSA is a wholly owned subsidiary of Volvo AB, and serves as the exclusive importer and distributor of Volvo vehicles in the United States. (Id. ¶ 15.) VCUSA imports, markets, and sells Volvo passenger vehicles in the United States and communicates with

U.S.-based dealers and customers. (Id.) VCUSA issues the New Vehicle Limited Warranty (“NVLW”) and controls the administration of warranty claims. (Id.; ECF 10-3, “NVLW”.) Plaintiffs bring this action individually and as representatives of a Class of similarly situated consumers. (CAC ¶ 13.) Specifically, Plaintiffs bring this action on behalf of themselves

1 The facts and procedural history are drawn from the Class Action Complaint (CAC) and documents integral to or relied upon by the Class Action Complaint. See In re Burlington Coat Factory Sec. Litig., 114 F.3d 1410, 1426 (3d Cir. 1997). For the purposes of a motion to dismiss, the facts drawn from the Class Action Complaint are accepted as true. See Fowler v. UMPC Shadyside, 578 F.3d 203, 210-11 (3d Cir. 2009).

2 Volvo AB is a Swedish public limited company that serves as the ultimate parent of numerous operating subsidiaries worldwide, including VCUSA. (Id. ¶ 17.) Volvo AB is not a party to this action. (See id.) and as a class action on behalf of a National Class (“Nationwide Class”), or, in the alternative, on behalf of a State Class. (Id. ¶¶ 96-97.) Plaintiffs specifically allege design defects in two features of Defendants’ vehicles: the Rear Auto Brake (“RAB”) feature, and the Dashboard Drive Display (“DD”) feature. (Id. ¶¶ 2-3.)

The RAB feature is designed to use cameras and radar technology to detect objects in the surrounding area, and automatically brake when the car is in reverse or rolls backwards and senses objects in near proximity. (Id. ¶¶ 2, 21-23.) Plaintiffs allege this feature is defective and causes drivers to experience spontaneous engagement of the automatic braking system, which results in injury-causing whiplash-like motions. (Id. ¶ 2.) Specifically, Mr. Thomson alleges he experienced spontaneous RAB activation in his vehicle in February, August, and September of 2025. (Id. ¶¶ 61-63.) Ms. Thomson alleges she experienced spontaneous RAB activation “on multiple occasions,” and that the “sudden braking thrust her violently forward against her seatbelt and then backwards into the headrest.” (Id. ¶¶ 74, 76.) In addition, Plaintiffs cite various anonymous consumer complaints posted on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s

(“NHSTA”) forum, Reddit, and XC40forum.com describing similar incidents with the 2024 Volvo XC40’s RAB feature. (Id. ¶¶ 28-31.) The DD feature is a dashboard display of driving features such as the speedometer, odometer, lane assists, blinkers, and navigation. (Id. ¶¶ 3, 33.) Plaintiffs allege that this feature is defective, and experiences spontaneous blackouts of all or parts of the digital screens which impair driving abilities. (Id.) Specifically, Mr. Thomson alleges that since February 2025, he experienced numerous spontaneous blackouts of the Instrumental Panel (“IP”), the part of the DD that displays information regarding the vehicle’s gauges, warning symbols, and assistive driving functions. (Id. ¶¶ 33, 64.) Ms. Thomson alleges that the IP portion of her DD display would turn off at least two times per week while she was driving, causing her to lose access to her speedometer, blinker function, lane assist features, and navigation map. (Id. ¶¶ 74, 77.) Further, as with the RAB, Plaintiffs cite various anonymous consumer complaints posted on various online forums describing similar incidents with the 2024 Volvo XC40’s DD feature. (Id. ¶¶ 44-48.)

A. Procedural History Plaintiffs initiated this action against Defendants on November 4, 2025. (See id.) In their Class Action Complaint, Plaintiffs allege violations of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act (“NJCFA”) and Kansas Consumer Protection Act (“KCPA”) (Counts I and IV), and breaches of express warranty (Count II) and implied warranty (Count III). (Id. ¶¶ 103-152.) Defendants timely filed a Motion to Dismiss on February 4, 2026. (Mot.) Plaintiffs opposed the Motion on April 6, 2026. (Opp.) Defendants filed a reply on April 20, 2026. (Reply.) This Court held oral argument on the Motion on September 1, 2026. (ECF 27.) II. LEGAL STANDARDS A. Rule 12(b)(1)

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Cathy Jo Thomson and Donald Fred Thomson, Individually and On Behalf of All Others Similarly Situated v. Volvo Car North America, LLC, and Volvo Car USA, LLC, (D.N.J. 2026).

Cathy Jo Thomson and Donald Fred Thomson, Individually and On Behalf of All Others Similarly Situated v. Volvo Car North America, LLC, and Volvo Car USA, LLC (Cathy Jo Thomson and Donald Fred Thomson, Individually and On Behalf of All Others Similarly Situated v. Volvo Car North America, LLC, and Volvo Car USA, LLC) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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