Ras Al Khaimah: Samsung is willing to investigate the case of a customer in Ras Al Khaimah who said his S7 Edge mobile phone caught fire in his trousers.
In a statement to Gulf News, Samsung said: “Customer safety continues to be on the top of our priorities and we, at Samsung, take such incidents with utmost seriousness. We will only be able to conduct the necessary examination to determine the exact cause of this incident once the customer accepts our request to hand over the device. We would like to assure our customers that we are always dedicated to employ strict quality control and safety standards to ensure safe user experience.”
‘Felt burning’
The customer, an Indian expat in Ras Al Khaimah, said the phone left burns on his left leg.
Jabir Badarudeen, 35, who works for a shipping and logistics company in Ras Al Khaimah, said he was walking from his parked car towards a building in Ras Al Khaimah on September 23 when he noticed smoke around him.
“As I was turning around to look where the smoke was coming from, I felt my left leg burning. I put my hand inside my trouser pocket and felt my phone, which was really hot. I somehow managed to throw it out. A few people had gathered around me and were putting water on my leg,” said Badarudeen, who is from the southern Indian state of Kerala.
“Some people from my company took me to the hospital. I was discharged the same day after receiving treatment for burns. I was prescribed some antibiotics and painkillers. In the following days, I also visited a private clinic and another hospital for dressing the wound.”
Badarudeen said he had purchased the phone brand new in October 2016 and always used the original charger and earphones.
He added that on September 25 he called Samsung customer care, who sent an employee the same day to collect the phone, charger and earphones, according to him.
Compensation
He said: “I asked Samsung for financial compensation but they said they can only offer me the price of the burnt phone, which was around Dh2,500; plus a new Samsung S9 or Note 9 mobile phone; as well as the money I spent on my treatment, which was around Dh800-Dh900 at the time.”
Badarudeen added that he asked Samsung to return the phone, which he says was handed back on October 2.
“I asked for the phone to be returned to me because they were unable to meet my requirements that I had requested. They said they are not able to give me more than their offer. I said if that is the case, then please give me back my phone. I’ve already approached a lawyer and I plan to move legally against Samsung as I believe I deserve compensation. I have also lodged a complaint in Ras Al Khaimah police station in Mamourah on October 6.”
In 2016, Samsung stopped sales of its Galaxy Note7 mobile phones after cases of the devices catching fire. Samsung determined that the devices had a battery cell issue. It recalled the devices and offered customers a series of options, such as replacements, exchanges and refunds.
