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In response to complaints and a class action lawsuit over failing TVs caused by bum capacitors, Samsung has promised to provide benefits to owners of a select group of its TVs.
The benefits include extension of a warranty for 18 months after March 2, 2012, a “free service visit” to determine if your TV has the issue, and refunds for related expenses and/or payments via debit card or cash. They apply to all U.S. consumers, not just residents of Oklahoma where the lawsuit was filed.
The TVs covered by the proposed settlement include LCD, plasma, and DLP models made before December 31, 2008. The settlement does not cover Samsung TVs manufactured after that date.
Click through to Samsung’s dedicated Web site at www.samsung.com/us/capacitorsettlement/ for the full details, to view the affected TVs or to download a claim form.
In a statement to CNET in our original story, Samsung said “Based on the most current data available, we can confirm that only a small percentage–approximately 1 percent–of all TVs sold in the U.S. during those three years [2006-2008] could exhibit the faulty-capacitor problem.” It claims that the warranty extension applies to more than 7.5 million TVs, an number that is, according to Samsung, much larger than that 1 percent figure.
Judging from some complaints in the comments to our story, however, as well as on Web sites like consumeraffairs.com, the issue may extend beyond the models and the years covered in the settlement.
Samsung officially denies the complaints in the suit:
The class action lawsuit alleges a defect that may cause the television to experience symptoms such as not turning on, experiencing a delay in turning on, making a clicking sound, cycling on and off, or other similar problems. Samsung denies the allegations in the lawsuit, but has agreed to settle the lawsuit to avoid the costs and uncertainty of continued litigation.
What do you think? Are you an owner of one of the affected TVs who qualifies for a benefit? Are you worried (or not) about your newer Samsung TV? Does the company’s response make you more likely or less likely to buy a Samsung TV in the future? Let us know in comments.
