WI product liability settlements: iPhone explosion lawsuits Injury settlement amounts depend on the quality of your lawyer.
Immediately seek medical attention.
Toughing it out can compromise your recovery and leaves you with no documentation of the extent of your injuries.
Take pictures of your injuries every day.
If you didn’t start on day one, it’s better to start now than never.
Retain all parts and pieces from the damaged phone.
Put the parts in a plastic bag and label it with the model and serial number of your phone.
Contact Warshafsky Law Firm ASAP.
The sooner we begin building your case to go to trial, the more leverage you have.
Warshafsky Law Personal Injury Attorneys Represent Injured Cell Phone Users
American consumers have come to expect their high tech gadgets to work flawlessly and safely. So when there’s news of an Apple iPhone exploding for no apparent reason it’s not only big news, it raises a lot of questions. Chief among those: Can you sue if you’re injured by an exploding iPhone?
First, a little background…
Over the years, there have been sporadic stories about iPhones exploding. The most recent of these involved an iPhone 6 exploding in the hands of an 11-year-old California girl over the summer of 2019. There were only minor injuries, and as of this writing Apple was still investigating the incident.
One of the more serious incidents occurred in October, 2016, when a man in South Carolina put his iPhone 6 in his pocket after making a call. His phone was connected to the charging device, and after a few minutes the phone caught fire and burned him so severely he had to be airlifted to a burn center for surgery. His $75,000 lawsuit against Apple is still making its way through the courts.
So, to answer the question: yes, you can sue for injuries from an exploding iPhone. Adding to the strength of any lawsuit over injuries from an exploding iPhone, there’s a history of iPhones catching fire, exploding and causing injuries. There have even been iPhone explosions in Apple stores. In the South Carolina man’s case, the suit alleges Apple’s design is defective because it lacks safety features that could have prevented the explosion.
Three signs your iPhone may be about to explode:
Bulging on the back of the phone. Before a battery explodes, it will usually bulge and swell enough to push outward on the plastic case.
Hissing noise coming from near the battery. Do NOT hold it up to your ear to hear it better!
The phone gets very hot and won’t cool down. Don't continue to use it or charge it.
If your iPhone shows any of those signs, put it on a non-combustible surface so it won’t start a fire if it ignites. Once it cools down, take it to an Apple store to have it evaluated.
When people choose their Wisconsin personal injury lawyer based on the endorsement of a football player or actor, they risk choosing an attorney who has never won a courtroom trial. Settlement mills just forward your paperwork and take a cut of your damages.
Hundreds of times we have prepared cases like yours beyond the brink of trial. Facing unlimited liability AND an expensive jury trial, insurance companies fess up what your case is worth. They HATE when you choose Warshafsky. Insurance companies know: it IS about the money.
What iPhone Users Need to Know About Lithium-ion Batteries and Charging Cables
The cause of these exploding iPhones has been traced to the lithium-ion battery used to power them. If the battery is overcharged or left in an environment where the temperature exceeds 113-degrees, it can cause the battery to overheat, which causes its internal components to break down and merge together. This is akin to connecting a wire to the positive and negative ends of a battery, which is known as “electrical arcing.” The sparks generated cause the battery to explode.
There’s also evidence supporting the contention that using aftermarket chargers and cables can cause the batteries to fail. There have been numerous incidents of iPhones overheating and igniting while connected to a non-Apple cable or charger. Apple's Lightning cable has a miniature chip inside that protects their phones from power surges and overheating. Many inexpensive, third-party cables lack this chip. Apple certifies cords from other manufacturers through their Made For Iphone (MFI) certification program. If you’re using a non-Apple cable, you can look it up on Apple’s website to see if it’s an MFI cable or not.
If You’ve Been Injured by an Exploding iPhone, Request a Free Legal Consultation
Warshafsky Law has extensive experience representing all kinds of accident and injury victims. When you’re litigating against a major corporation with very deep pockets, you need experienced attorneys who will fight tooth and nail to get you the compensation you deserve. That’s where Warshafsky Law comes in. We’ve fought and won numerous David vs Goliath cases, and we’ll do everything possible to win yours.
First, though, take advantage of a free initial legal consultation with one of our Milwaukee personal injury attorneys. If you’re not able to come to our Milwaukee or Madison office, we can arrange a phone or Skype conference. We represent clients all over the U.S., so it’s not critical to meet face-to-face for our initial meeting.