A Colorado family is suing Instant Pot after one of the company’s appliances reportedly exploded, scalding their then 9-year-old daughter and causing disfigurement. The incident, which took place in 2017, left the young girl with third-degree burns on 16% of her body and has left her with anxiety when dealing with hot objects and appliances.
According to a CBS6 report, the Cooper family regularly used the popular pressure cooker, the Instant Pot DUO60 V2, in their kitchen. During the particular incident in question, the family was making soup in the appliance for a family friend. The family’s daughter, Caroline, offered to help her mother Mary make the soup. The mother manually vented the machine to de-pressurize it and add kale to the mixture.
It’s at that point, according to the family, that the Instant Pot exploded. The mother called the sound it made “horrible” and claimed that the lid flew off of the pot. The soup came flying out of the appliance, splashing the floor and ceiling while also covering Caroline. She was immediately taken to the hospital, where she was subject to weeks of treatments for physical and mental strain caused by the incident. According to the lawsuit, she sustained burn injuries to her shoulder, arm, chest, and torso.
At issue in the lawsuit filed by the family is whether Instant Pot adequately warns of the potential safety concerns that users face. In part, the family is alleging that Instant Pot’s claim that its appliance cannot open while still pressurized is untrue. An attorney in the case claims that Instant Pot has received multiple warnings that its products suffer from a “design defect” that can lead to serious burns and called the appliance a “ticking time bomb.”
Instant Pot, for its part, has denied the claims and has filed a response to the charges that state its products are “reasonably safe” and in line with industry regulatory standards.
“At Instant Brands, we are committed to providing high-quality products to our valued customers, and their satisfaction and safety is our top priority,” the company said in a statement to Digital Trends. “While it is Instant Brands’ policy not to comment on ongoing litigation, the product complies with all applicable industry standards.”
