Lawn Mower False Advertising Consumer Protection Lawsuit
Settlement Information
For information about the settlement, filing a claim or obtaining a claim form, please contact one of the following:
- Website: www.lawnmowerclass.com (you can submit a claim online or download the claim form).
- Telephone: 1-877-773-8196 (you can request a claim form sent by mail).
- Mailing Address:
Lawn Mowers Settlement
P.O. Box 2309
Faribault, MN 55021-9009
Background
Consumers in several states have filed class action lawsuits claiming
that the manufacturers of certain lawn mowers have knowingly misrepresented,
and significantly overstated, the horsepower of the products sold nationwide
for the past fifteen years.
As the price for lawn mowers is linked to the horsepower of the engine
-- the higher the horsepower, the more expensive the lawn mower --
defendants' alleged misrepresentations have caused consumers to purchase
expensive lawn mowers that provided lower horsepower than advertised.
The complaints charge that defendants have even sold lawn mowers with identical engines
while rating and labeling them with different horsepower, and charged
higher prices for the lawn mowers advertised as offering the greater
horsepower.
The Lawn Mowers at Issue
The lawn mowers and engines subject to the lawsuit were sold by the leading
manufacturers of lawn mowers and engines in America, including defendants:
- Sears, Roebuck & Company, which sells lawn mowers under its brand
name, Craftsman;
- Deere & Company;
- Tecumseh Products Company, which manufactures engines for law mowers
sold by Sears and other companies;
- Briggs & Stratton Corporation, which manufactures engines that
are installed in lawn mowers;
- Kawasaki Motors Corp. USA, which manufactures engines for lawn
mowers sold by Deere, The Toro Company, and other manufacturers;
- MTD Products Inc., which manufactures lawn mowers sold under the
brand names Cub Cadet, Troy Bilt, Yard-Man, Yard Machines, Bolens
and White Outdoor.
- The Toro Company, which manufactures lawn mowers sold under the
brand names Toro, Lawn-Boy and Exmark;
- American Honda Motor Company, Inc., which manufactures engines
for lawn mowers sold by Deere, Toro and other companies;
- Electrolux Home Products, Inc., which manufactures lawn mowers
as American Yard Products;
- Husqvarna Outdoor Products, Inc., which manufactures lawn mowers
under the brand names Poulan, Poulan Pro, Weed Eater and Husqvarna,
as well as lawn mowers sold under Sears' Craftsman brand; and
- The Kohler Company, which manufactures engines installed in lawn
mowers.
The Legal Rights of Consumers
State and federal consumer protection laws provide consumers with remedies
for products that do not perform as advertised or that were defectively
designed or manufactured, even after the warranty period has expired.
In many consumer protection cases, the cost of prosecuting individual
lawsuits for each consumer is prohibitive.
The law, however, does not leave the consumer powerless. Individual consumers
may band together in a class action lawsuit, thereby representing all
consumers who purchased the allegedly defective product. Thus, a class
action can provide an effective means for consumers to force a corporation
to acknowledge its legal responsibilities and provide monetary relief
to all members of the class.
Trademark Notice
"Craftsman" is a trademark of Sears, Roebuck & Company.
"Cub Cadet," "Troy Bilt," "Yard Man," "Yard Machines," "Bolens" and
"White Outdoor" are trademarks of MTD Products, Inc. "Toro," "Lawn
Boy" and "Exmark" are trademarks of The Toro Company. "Poulan," "Poulan
Pro," "Weed Eater" and "Husqvarna" are trademarks of Husqvarna Outdoor
Products, Inc. The use of these marks and any other marks is solely
for informational and product identification purposes. Lieff Cabraser
Heimann & Bernstein,
LLP, is not affiliated in any way with any of the companies listed.
About Lieff Cabraser
Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP is a sixty-plus attorney law firm that has represented plaintiffs nationwide since 1972. We have offices in San Francisco, New York and Nashville. We represent plaintiffs in class and group actions and in individual lawsuits in cases involving substantial losses. For the last seven years, The National Law Journal has selected Lieff Cabraser as one of the top plaintiffs' law firms in the nation.
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