PHILADELPHIA (BRAIN) — State Farm Fire & Casualty and State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is jointly suing Rad Power Bikes on behalf of an insured client for property damage after his Rad Power e-bike caught fire.
The lawsuit, filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, states on or about May 30, 2022, homeowner Gerald Luff's e-bike — the model is not disclosed — "malfunctioned and failed catastrophically" and resulted in a fire that damaged to his property and automobiles.
According to the lawsuit, damages were in excess of $250,000. State Farm maintains the damages were the result of Rad Power Bikes' negligence "by and through its employees, agents, technicians, vendors, subcontractors ..."
The lawsuit alleges design, manufacturing, and component defects; use and/or handling instruction and/or warnings defects; and/or a failure to warn about the design, manufacturing, and/or component defects; and/or proper installation instructions. A breach of warranty also is alleged.
A Rad Power Bikes spokesperson said the brand doesn't comment on pending legal matters.
This is the second lawsuit filed against Seattle-based Rad Power Bikes in the past two months. In August, the parents of a 12-year-old girl who later died from injuries suffered while riding as a passenger on a Rad Power Bike in 2021 filed a wrongful death suit. The lawsuit also included helmet-maker Giro Sport Design.
That lawsuit was filed in L.A. Superior Court by parents Jonathan and Kaye Steinsapir and asks for a jury trial that will determine damages. It says Rad Power markets its e-bikes to children without adequate warnings, and design defects on the RadRunner e-bike that their daughter Molly Steinsapir was a passenger on contributed to the accident and her death.
