Sunbeam Crockpots Recalled for Burn Injuries

Sunbeam Products has issued a recall of one of its crock pot products, the Crock-Pot 6-Quart Express Multi-Cooker, due to a burn hazard. According to the recall, the multi-cooker may pressurize if the lid hasn’t been locked in place completely, causing the lid to detach when the crock pot is in use. If the hot food or liquid ejects from the pot, it can lead to serious burns.

Sunbeam had received more than 100 reports where the lid detached in use, resulting in almost 100 burn injuries ranging from first-degree to third-degree. So, what would happen if you were injured by a dangerous/defective product like this Sunbeam crockpot?

First, let’s look at the effect a recall might have on a product liability claim. A recall does not automatically make a manufacturer liable: A plaintiff must still prove the elements of a product liability case: that the particular product was defective and that the defect caused his or her injuries. Circumstantial evidence of a recall can help establish that the kind of defect the plaintiff is alleging existed when the plaintiff was injured, but additional direct evidence, like witness testimony and photos of the actual product, will still typically be required.

Other courts simply do not allow evidence of a recall to be admitted in a case. Those courts reason that if a jury found out about a recall, the jurors would be ‘prejudiced’ by that information and be unable to consider other evidence in the proper light.

On the other hand, a recall does not automatically get a manufacturer off the hook. They must prove that the particular plaintiff directly received notice of the recall and that the recall adequately warned the plaintiff of the dangers posed by the defective product.”

The Sunbeam recall mostly impacts purchases made in the US and Canada. The cookers were bought at Walmart, Target and online at Amazon as well as other national retailers. The timeline was from July 2017 and up to the time of the recall: Thanksgiving 2020. To find out if your crock pot is part of the recall, you can look at the bottom of the base or on the electrical plug on one of the prongs for the codes K196JN through K365JN and L001JN through L273JN.

If you were injured by this product or one like it, it is best to consult a personal injury attorney. They will be able to help guide you along in the legal process and have experience taking on large manufacturers like (in this case) Sunbeam.