A Nevada man seeking to represent other consumers has sued Hewlett-Packard Co., the world’s No. 2 personal-computer maker, claiming the company’s Pavilion notebook overheats and malfunctions during normal use.
A complaint filed March 29 in federal court in San Jose, Calif., claims overheating makes the computer screen display vertical red lines or checkered patterns, or go blank and eventually makes the circuit board fail. Hewlett-Packard also unfairly charges for repairs to computers no longer covered by warranties, the complaint said.
The case was filed 10 days after a Michigan federal judge approved a class-action suit settlement between Hewlett-Packard and consumers claiming desktop H-P computers freeze. That settlement offers customers payments and discounts for as much as $125 and repair reimbursement for as much as $750.
“Simply having H-P repair the notebook computer is not an adequate solution for consumers,” the San Jose complaint said.
Replacing the circuit board doesn’t “address the fact that the Pavilion cannot effectively dissipate the heat produced by its component parts,” the document said.
Michael Brothers, identified in the complaint as a Nevada resident, brought the case under a California unfair business practices law and for breach of contract, saying Palo Alto, Calif.- based Hewlett-Packard hid the defect.
The complaint asks for class-action or group lawsuit status.
Brothers is represented by the San Francisco law firm Green Welling.
A Hewlett Packard spokeswoman declined to comment.
