Class Action Over Allegedly Defective Dometic RV Refrigeration Units Lands in District Court in Florida

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A proposed class action initially filed in California against Dometic Corporation has been transferred to District Court for the Southern District of Florida. The 11 plaintiffs behind the case allege Dometic actively concealed a defect in the cooling units found in at least 10 models of its gas absorption refrigerators designed for use in recreational vehicles (RVs) and boats. From the complaint:

“Specifically, the defective cooling units are designed such that boiler tubes are prone to premature corrosion and stress fatigue and develop microscopic cracks, causing noxious and flammable chemicals and gases (hydrogen and ammonia) inside the sealed boiler tubes to leak. This creates both a serious risk of fire due to the cooling unit’s proximity to competent ignition sources, and exposure to other bodily harm from inhalation of the noxious cooling unit solution.”

The complaint adds that because the units are self-contained, highly pressurized systems, a leak will in fact destroy the entire unit, which the plaintiffs say is significantly expensive to replace. Further, the lawsuit charges that although Dometic initiated two recalls (in 2006 and 2008) to address the supposed cooling unit defects, the “recall kits” used by the defendant “were never designed to prevent leaks from developing,” another fact the plaintiffs say Dometic actively concealed from proposed class members:

“At no time did [the defendant] warn, notify, or otherwise alert class members that the safety risk of leaks, fires, and noxious fumes remained. Instead, [Dometic] sought to avoid disrupting sales and to minimize its recall costs by not revealing this fact and choosing the low-cost ‘recall kit’ instead of a safer, more comprehensive modification or outright cooling unit replacement to reduce the safety risk.”