Class Action Alleges Rand McNally ‘Concealed’ that TND Tablet 80 Truck GPS Was ‘Prone to Failure and Malfunction’

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A proposed class action lawsuit alleges Rand McNally has concealed from consumers that its TND Tablet 80 truck GPS is “prone to failure and malfunction.”

The 34-page case alleges that the advanced GPS device used by professional truck drivers nationwide is defective in that the tablet will “consistently generate incorrect directions, identify incorrect current locations, not locate streets and/or addresses, freeze, and experience significant slowdowns,” among other issues. The case further claims that the tablet is prone to direct users into “unsafe terrain or hazardous road conditions,” or even areas in which trucks are prohibited, and can distract or confuse a driver. In other scenarios, the suit claims, the TND Tablet 80 will suddenly fail to function at all, placing drivers and others on the road at an even greater risk of harm.

The lawsuit describes the issues with the tablet as “especially egregious” given the safety risk posed by driving with an unreliable navigation system and the defendant’s claims with regard to the product’s reliability. The plaintiff, a commercial driver residing in Wisconsin, claims that while using the defendant's GPS tablet would often display his location on a “parallel or nonexistent road” and reroute him, direct him to the wrong location, or take his truck in the opposite direction. Further, the man says using the TND Tablet 80 in cities was especially difficult, and would cause substantial delays.

“[The plaintiff’s] problems with his TND Tablet 80 were neither limited nor occasional – he experienced these problems most of the time that he used the TND Tablet 80,” the case charges, adding the plaintiff has had to stop using his tablet altogether due to its “frequent and consistent failures.”

The plaintiff claims Rand McNally, despite touting the product’s reliability, knew of the issues with its GPS tablet yet continued to market and sell the device to consumers. The case further alleges that though the device comes with a one-year warranty, the defendant has failed to honor such when contacted by drivers looking for repairs.

According to the suit, Rand McNally, rather than repair ostensibly defective GPS units, has sent proposed class members replacement devices stricken by the same defect. Other times, the case says, the company has claimed issues inside of a user’s truck were to blame for the Tablet 80 functioning improperly. In either scenario, Rand McNally has not shared with consumers that no remedy exists for the problems plaguing the TND Tablet 80 GPS nor any way to reduce the product’s “failures and malfunctions,” the case says.

As the lawsuit tells it, information concerning the product’s safety and any defects are material to consumers. The plaintiff, who says he paid $499.99 for Rand McNally’s device, asserts that neither he nor other proposed class members would have bought the TND Tablet 80 GPS had they known the pricey product does not work as reasonably expected.