Class Action Claims Recalled Pittsburgh Auto Heavy Duty Jack Stands Sold by Harbor Freight Are Defective

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Harbor Freight Tools USA faces a proposed class action wherein a consumer claims the Pittsburgh Automotive 6-Ton Heavy Duty Steel Jack Stand recalled by the retailer suffers from a defect that makes the product “inherently dangerous.”

Per the lawsuit, the plaintiff attempted to return the jack stands yet was denied a refund after being told the products were no longer under warranty.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Harbor Freight recalled more than 1.7 million Pittsburgh Automotive 3 Ton and 6 Ton Heavy Duty Steel Jack Stands in late May 2020 over the safety issues alleged in the lawsuit.

“Owners of these jack stands are asked to immediately discontinue use due to safety concerns,” the NHTSA advised. “Injuries have been reported due to this issue. Affected customers will receive full refunds upon request.” 

The plaintiff, a Laurens County, Georgia resident, alleges the jack stand—Part 61197—can collapse under load due to manufacturing inconsistencies caused by “aging in the tooling.” Additionally, the three-ton version of the Pittsburgh Automotive steel jack stand suffers from inconsistent location indexing of the pawl armature hole, the nine-page lawsuit claims.

“Plaintiff, like all purchasers of the jack stands, was damaged because he purchased a product that was unmerchantable and unfit for its intended purpose,” the complaint reads.

Per the suit, Harbor Freight sells three- and six-ton jack stands meant for use on personal vehicles. The jack stand, sold at Harbor Freight’s roughly 1,000 stores nationwide, is meant to lift and hold up most makes and models of cars and small trucks, the case says, with some models made with a self-locking ratchet handle for easy height control.

The plaintiff claims, however, that he’s used the defendant’s six-ton heavy duty steel jack stands on a number of occasions and experienced a slip on the product’s ratcheting mechanism while lifting his truck from the ground. Luckily, the suit says, the plaintiff had safety mechanisms in place to catch the truck before it could slam to the ground. 

Nevertheless, the plaintiff discontinued use of the jack stands “because he felt they were dangerous,” the lawsuit says. According to the case, the plaintiff attempted to return the products to the Macon Harbor Freight location yet was told they were no longer under warranty and could not be returned.

“[The plaintiff] had gotten no value out of the stands, and he discarded them because they were unsafe,” the case reads.

According to a July 2020 Penn Live report, Harbor Freight’s owner, Eric Schmidt, issued an apology after recalling a number of jack stands—which were meant to replace those recalled in May—over a “welding defect.”

The lawsuit looks to represent consumers nationwide who bought the recalled jack stands—item numbers 56371, 61196 and 61197—that were sold by Harbor Freight for household use. The case does not look to cover those who bought the jack stands and suffered property damage or personal injury.

Initially filed June 18 in Georgia federal court, the lawsuit was transferred to California’s Central District on August 28.  

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