Apple sued over MagSafe Power Adapters

"Dangerously frays and sparks" claims class action lawsuit

6 May 2009 11:50 GMT / By Amy-Mae Elliott

Apple is facing another lawsuit in the States, this time a class action effort that sees the company accused of negligent design and manufacture of its MagSafe Power Adapter for its MacBooks and MacBook Pros.

A trio of plaintiffs - Naotaka Kitagawa, Timothy Broad, and Jesse Reisman - have filed the suit in the US District Court in San Jose, alleging that both the £58, 85-watt and 60-watt MagSafe Adapter's cable "dangerously frays, sparks, and prematurely fails to work".

The filing suggests potentially millions of "flawed and dangerous Adapters which prematurely fail and present fire hazards" are at large with the class action status meaning more plaintiffs could emerge.

All three are claiming malfunctions with their MagSafes, with Broad stating after 14 months of use his MagSafe Adapter, "almost burned my hand when I brushed it accidentally", he claims the cable then began to melt before it shorted out.

Claiming that Apple has known of the potential problems for 3 years, the trio want Apple to either provide a "safe, defect-free Adapter" - or refund the purchase price of their laptops if Apple can't produce an acceptable unit - to all members of the aggrieved class.