LG Electronics sued for compressor defect causing refrigerator malfunction

LG Electronics is facing significant blame for its refrigerators reporting problems from its failure of linear compressors leading to a lawsuit. The linear compressor is a key component of a refrigerator’s cooling system that compresses and circulates liquid to gas refrigerant through coils.

According to the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Polly Ko, Miranda Sacharin, Judith Mcdonnell, and five other individuals have filed a class action lawsuit against LG Electronics America, Inc. and the manufacturer of Kenmore refrigerators equipped with LG’s compressors.

The lawsuit alleges that frequent defects including issues with LG’s linear compressors have caused the refrigerators to malfunction.

The complaint alleges that “these Kenmore and LG Refrigerators have been failing within approximately 24-36 months” and that “even when consumers have made warranty claims for malfunctioning Refrigerators, Defendants have not replaced them with working units or offered refunds. Instead, Defendants have attempted futile repairs or replaced defective compressors with other defective compressors which resulted in repeated refrigerator failures.”

“We are alleging fraud,” said attorney Azar Mouzari who is handling the case. “They’ve known this issue for over a decade now. And they’ve had multiple chances to remedy the issue.”

NBC also reported on the issue highlighting the concerns of consumers. “It’s sort of like a ticking time bomb,” said Janet Moser, owner of a Kenmore refrigerator with an LG compressor. “If I’m going to have to spend $1,500 to repair a refrigerator, and refrigerators are $2,000, what am I going to do?” she said.

LG has claimed that its linear compressor is the world’s first to be certified for a 20-year lifespan. However, in contrast to LG’s claims, these refrigerator owners continue to report problems with the compressor.

“I’ve been getting a lot of inquiries about LG’s compressors for four or five years now,” said John Jung, a refrigerator repair technician in Los Angeles. “The cost of repairing them could go up to $1,200, depending on the model.”

To date, LG Electronics USA has not commented on the lawsuit.

LG Electronics USA was facing another lawsuit over a defective refrigerator until recently.

At the time, a consumer in California bought an LG refrigerator (model LRSOS2706S) with an attached ice maker, but it allegedly broke down after two months. Even after the LG technician’s repair, the defect was repeated, leading to a lawsuit.

LG Electronics had already settled a class action lawsuit filed in 2020 over a compressor problem. Attorney Amy Park taking the case at the time claimed that “1.6 million LG refrigerators have compressor problems.”

“The refrigerators are not defective and we deny any claims of defect, but we agreed to the settlement to avoid further litigation costs and to satisfy our customers,” said John Taylor, Vice President of LG Electronics USA.

The settlement covered refrigerator models with LG compressors manufactured between 2014 and 2017.

BY YEOL JANG, HOONSIK WOO    [jang.yeol@koreadaily.com]