Did Landlord Give Tenant Defective Electric Stove During Gas Outage?

Tenant sued landlord for negligence, claiming that she was injured when a pot of hot oil fell on her. Tenant also sued the manufacturer of the two-burner electric stove involved in her injury.

In early 2014, while gas service at the building was interrupted, landlord gave tenants electric stoves to tide them over. Tenant used about 10 different electric stoves during the year there was no gas service. She claimed that they would just stop working after a few weeks. Landlord replaced the stoves as they became unusable. One day, tenant placed a pot of oil on the stove and left it uncovered. Fifteen minutes later, she reached into one of the overhead cabinets and accidentally knocked a can over, which fell into the oil and caused oil to splash and burn her. Tenant had the stove for at least two weeks before the accident, it never dropped or fell, and she had no complaints about it before the accident. Tenant claimed that landlord had provided a defective stove and had failed to restore the building's gas service for too long.

The court granted landlord's request to dismiss the case. Landlord neither created any hazard that could be associated with the stove as a product and had no notice of any defect. No tenants had complained about this particular stove, which was delivered new to tenants. The court also ruled that tenant could amend its claim against the electric stove manufacturer.

Astacio v. Birdie 141 Broadway Assoc.: Index No. 15980/2015, 2020 NY Slip Op 31074(U)(Sup. Ct. NY; 4/27/20; Jaffe, J)