Instant Pot Duo Nova Pressure Cooker Lawsuit Filed Over Burns Caused By Failure of “Built In Safety Features”

An Indiana man has filed a product liability lawsuit over “serious and substantial burn injuries” caused by an Instant Pot Duo Nova pressure cooker, which exploded when built-in safety features failed to prevent the lid from being accidentally removed while the contents were still under pressure.

Joshua Lee Summers filed the complaint (PDF) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana on January 3, pursuing claims against Instant Brands, Inc. as the defendant.

Instant Pots pressure cookers have been widely marketed over the past decade as a safe and effective kitchen appliance, suggesting that using the modern electronic device is “everyday magic”, and indicating that advanced safety mechanisms overcome traditional problems with pressure cookers exploding. However, Summers joins a growing number of consumers now Instant Pot pressure cooker lawsuits, after safety features failed and the devices exploded, forcefully ejecting scalding hot liquid and contents.

Summers indicates his Instant Pot Duo Nova Pressure Cooker exploded in January 2021, after advertised safety features failed, allowing the lid to be accidentally removed before all steam had been released by the device. As a result he suffered burns over large portions of his body, and indicates he has been left with permanent injuries.

“The incident occurred as a result of the failure of the pressure cooker’s supposed ‘Built-In Safety Features,’ which purport to keep the consumer safe while using the pressure cooker,” Summers’ lawsuit states. “In addition, the incident occurred as a result of Defendant’s failure to redesign the pressure cooker, despite the existence of economical, safer alternative designs.”

The lawsuit claims the manufacturer knew or should have known the Instant Pot Duo Nova pressure cooker posed a safety risk to consumers but continued to ignore or conceal this knowledge from the public in order to continue to generate substantial profits.

Pressure Cooker Explosion Lawsuits

Modern electronic pressure cookers have become increasingly popular in recent decades, amid marketing that promotes advanced safety features which are supposed to prevent pressure cooker explosions that have plagued older, stove-top designs. Products have been marketed under a number of brand names, through social media, websites and home shopping stations.

Most of the problems involve similar pressure cooker burns which occurred after the lid was removed while the contents were still under high pressure, typically resulting in burns covering a large percentage of the user’s body. However, other injuries linked to pressure cookers have included eye injuries, broken bones and other complications that resulted from electrocutions, spills or explosions.

As more of these electric pressure cookers have been introduced in recent years, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued several pressure cooker recalls over problems where lids were able to be opened while contents are under pressure, allowing hot contents to be expelled and causing a scald or burn injury to individuals in the immediate area.