PHILADELPHIA – A pair of Pennsylvania homeowners allege that a wood-staining product they purchased at a local Home Depot store caused a significant fire at their residence and led to more than $400,000 in damages.
David Singley and Jennifer Singley of West Chester filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on Oct. 20 versus Rust-Oleum Corporation of Vernon Hills, Ill. and Home Depot USA, Inc. of Atlanta, Ga.
“On or before May 30, 2021, plaintiffs purchased at a Home Depot store one or more containers of Rust-Oleum/Varathane Wood Stain, a product designed, formulated, manufactured, tested, packaged, labeled, marketed, sold and/or distributed, by defendants. On or about May 30, 2021, plaintiffs applied the subject stain product at the subject property. The subject stain product was applied in a manner reasonably expected and foreseeable to Rust-Oleum,” the suit said.
“The subject stain product was used for its intended purpose in a manner reasonably foreseeable to Rust-Oleum. After the work was finished, the application materials containing and/or saturated with the subject product were left at the subject property. On May 30, 2021, a fire erupted at the subject property.”
The suit adds that the fire “resulted in severe damage to the real and personal property of the plaintiffs.”
“As a result of this fire, plaintiffs were unable to live at the subject property and were forced to rent other property while repairs were made and their home was restored to pre-fire condition, and plaintiffs suffered other consequential and incidental damages including clean-up costs, repair, and associated expenses,” the suit states.
“The fire was directly and proximately caused by the spontaneous combustion of the application materials containing and/or saturated with the subject stain product as further and more fully described below. As a direct and proximate result, plaintiffs sustained the damages described herein in an amount in excess of $400,000.”
For counts of strict liability, negligence, breach of implied warranty and breach of warranties, the plaintiffs are seeking damages individually, jointly, severally and/or otherwise, in excess of $400,000, plus interest, costs, attorney’s fees, delay damages, and such other relief as the Court deems appropriate under the circumstances.
The plaintiffs are represented by Kenneth T. Levine of de Luca Levine, in Pittsburgh.
The defendants have not yet secured legal counsel.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania case 2:22-cv-04210
From the Pennsylvania Record: Reach Courts Reporter Nicholas Malfitano at nick.malfitano@therecordinc.com