Texas TV Customer Files Deceptive Trade Suit Over Samsung's Warranty Policy

Samsung failed to disclose its replacement policy for defective TVs in the product warranty, alleged a customer in a Tuesday fraud complaint (docket CL-23-1584) in Texas District Court, Hidalgo County. Hidalgo County resident Rolando Quintana, an attorney, bought a 55-inch Samsung OLED TV in December that stopped working March 8. After Samsung’s local repair service was “unreliable” in Quintana’s pursuit of getting the TV repaired, the customer contacted Samsung for an alternate repair company, which didn’t return calls, said the plaintiff. Samsung offered to replace the TV with a “similar,” more expensive QLED model, attempting to “strong arm” Quintana into accepting it, he said. When he examined the similar model at a Best Buy store, “it became evident” Samsung was “attempting to pawn off an inferior television,” said the complaint. Quintana sent Samsung a demand letter under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act, leading a manager to call him to “make things right.” When Quintana told the Samsung manager he wanted the exact TV he had purchased, or the 2023 version, the manager said those weren’t in stock. When he asked for clarification, the manager told Quintana the warranty division "has a stock of televisions of its own," different from the TVs sold on the company website. The manager offered Quintana a $1,799 coupon to use on the Samsung website, but the customer would have to pay for taxes “and presumably the shipping expenses,” he said, saying that information wasn’t spelled out in literature or on the website. Quintana seeks economic, exemplary and mental anguish damages, interest and attorney’s fees: a minimum $5,000 for the court of original jurisdiction; $15,000 to respond to an appeal in the state appeals court and $20,000 as “reasonable and necessary” attorney’s fees to respond to an appeal to the Texas Supreme Court.