Huffman v. Electrolux North America, Inc.

961 F. Supp. 2d 875, 81 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 402, 2013 WL 4428803, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 117531
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Ohio
DecidedAugust 13, 2013
DocketCase No. 3:12CV2681
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 961 F. Supp. 2d 875 (Huffman v. Electrolux North America, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Ohio primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Huffman v. Electrolux North America, Inc., 961 F. Supp. 2d 875, 81 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 402, 2013 WL 4428803, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 117531 (N.D. Ohio 2013).

Opinion

ORDER

JAMES G. CARR, Senior District Judge.

This is a class action products liability suit against Electrolux North America, Inc. (Electrolux). Plaintiff asserts a variety of common-law and statutory products liability claims against Electrolux. Pending is Electrolux’s partial motion to dismiss plaintiffs common-law products liability claims and strike plaintiffs class allegations (Doc. 9). Plaintiff has filed a response (Doc. 14) to which defendant has replied (Doc. 15).

This court has subject matter jurisdiction under the Class Action Fairness Act, 28 U.S.C. §§ 1332(d)(2), (6).

For the reasons that follow, I grant the motion to dismiss in part and deny it in part and deny the motion to strike the class allegations.

Factual Background

In April, 2008, plaintiff Maureen Huffman bought a Frigidaire front-loading high efficiency washing machine from Lowes Home Improvement Center in Fremont, Ohio. Electrolux manufactured the washing machine.

Plaintiffs front-loading washer came with a one-year limited warranty:

Your appliance is covered by a one year limited warranty. For one year from your original date of purchase, Electrolux will pay all costs for repairing or replacing any parts of this appliance that prove to be defective in materials or workmanship.
‡ ‡ ‡ ‡ ‡
Claims based on implied warranties, including warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose, are limited to one year or the shortest period allowed by law, but not less than one year.

[878]*878Plaintiff alleges that sometime in 2011 she noticed a pungent odor coming from the area of her washing machine. According to plaintiff, the smell became so severe that she had to contact a plumber to investigate the problem.

In July and August of 2012, Huffman complained to Electrolux and demanded it fix the problem. Electrolux suggested running the wash cycle using vinegar and/or using the hot water cycle and leaving the machine’s door open to let it air out. None of the company’s suggestions abated the odor.

On October 26, 2012, plaintiff filed this class action. She defines the class as:

All residents of Ohio who purchased a front loading washing machine manufactured, sold and/or distributed by defendant and purchased for primarily personal, family or household purposes in Ohio and not for resale.

According to plaintiffs estimate, tens of thousands of potential class members purchased front-loading Electrolux washers branded Crosley, Electrolux, Frigidaire, and White-Westinghouse. Plaintiff alleges that there are no relevant differences between the differently branded machines.

In her complaint, plaintiff lists eight causes of action. Plaintiff brings three common-law claims: 1) breach of warranty, 2) negligent design, and 3) negligent failure to warn. She asserts two statutory U.C.C. claims: I) breach of express warranty, O.R.C. § 1302.26, and 2) breach of implied warranty of merchantability, O.R.C. § 1302.27. Plaintiff also asserts three claims under the Ohio Products Liability Act (OPLA), O.R.C. § 2307.71 et seq.: 1) failure to conform with a representation, O.R.C. § 2307.77, 2) statutory defective design/formulation O.R.C. § 2307.75, and 3) inadequate warning/ instruction, O.R.C. § 2307.76.

As a remedy for her OPLA strict liability claim, plaintiff requests compensatory damages for destroyed clothing and household goods and economic loss — the difference in value between what she paid for the washing machine and value of the machine with the alleged defect. For her common-law claims, plaintiff seeks only economic loss damages.

Standard of Review

A complaint should be dismissed under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) if it fails to allege facts sufficient to support a claim upon which a court can grant relief. Dismissal is also proper if no law supports a claim, or, if on the face of a complaint, there is an insurmountable bar to relief. See Rauch v. Day & Night Mfg. Corp., 576 F.2d 697 (6th Cir.1978) (stating that courts may properly dismiss a complaint if the facts alleged show clearly that it is bared on statute of limitations grounds).

Considering only those well-pleaded facts, a complaint must “state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007). If the “well-pleaded facts do not permit the court to infer more than the mere possibility of misconduct,” the court should dismiss the complaint. Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 679, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009).

Defendant bears the burden of demonstrating that the plaintiff has failed to state a claim for relief. Directv, Inc. v. Treesh, 487 F.3d 471, 476 (6th Cir.2007).

Discussion

A. Common-Law Products Liability Claims

The crux of the parties’ dispute regarding plaintiffs common-law claims concerns whether plaintiff may simultaneously bring common-law products liability claims for [879]*879only economic loss damages and an OPLA claim for compensatory damages.

“Products liability refers to a manufacturer’s or seller’s liability for any damages or injuries suffered by a buyer, user, or bystander as a result of a defective product.” Christopher Ernst, Baldwin’s Ohio Practice, Ohio Tort Law, § 22.1 In 1988, the General Assembly enacted the OPLA, 0.R.C. § 2307.71 et seq., thereby codifying Ohio’s common law of products liability.

Section 2307.73 of the Act enumerates the products liability cause of action:

A manufacturer is subject to liability for compensatory damages based on a product liability claim only if the claimant establishes, by a preponderance of the evidence, all of the following:
(1) ... [T]he manufacturer’s product in question was defective in manufacture ..., design ..., due to inadequate warning ..., or ... because it did not conform to a representation.
(2) A defective aspect of the manufacturer’s product ...

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961 F. Supp. 2d 875, 81 U.C.C. Rep. Serv. 2d (West) 402, 2013 WL 4428803, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 117531, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/huffman-v-electrolux-north-america-inc-ohnd-2013.