Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WILMINGTON, DE – Attorney Timothy E. Lengkeek Files Suit After Exploding Lithium-Ion Battery Burns Delaware Man

Timothy E. Lengkeek has filed suit against a local vape shop on behalf of a 43-year-old Delaware man who was seriously burned when a lithium-ion battery he purchased for use in his e-cigarette exploded. (See Charles Hobbs and Dawn Hobbs, husband and wife v. Delaware Vapor, LLC, C.A. No. N17C-08-187 EMD).

The man was with his wife and two minor children in October of last year with the battery in his pocket when it suddenly exploded and burst into flames. He suffered extensive burns to his legs.

The lawsuit claims that the product was defective and that the vape shop (Delaware Vapor in Claymont) was negligent in failing to warn of a safety risk it knew about: the battery’s propensity for exploding spontaneously. It is claimed in the lawsuit that responsible vape shops give customers purchasing lithium-ion batteries safety literature containing explicit warnings against carrying these batteries in pockets unless they are stored in a protective case. The Delaware man, however, received no such warnings when the battery was sold to him in plain, unmarked cardboard packaging. “Had he been properly warned,” says Lengkeek, “this harmful incident would have been prevented.”