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Nov 04, 2024

OneWheel Serious Injury Lawsuit | Nov 2024 Litigation Update

The OneWheel is an electric skateboard product made by Future Motion Inc. The OneWheel features a large single wheel in the center of the board powered by an electric motor. Some Onewheel skateboards

The OneWheel is an electric skateboard product made by Future Motion Inc. The OneWheel features a large single wheel in the center of the board powered by an electric motor. Some Onewheel skateboards contain an apparent defect that causes them to stop suddenly and unexpectedly in mid-motion. When this happens, it can throw the rider off and cause severe injuries.

A growing number of product liability lawsuits are being filed against Future Motion by riders injured by the sudden stop defect in the OneWheel device. These lawsuits have been consolidated into a class action MDL. Settlement talks have already begun in these lawsuits. This page will provide the latest news and updates on this litigation, as well as our predictions on the potential settlement value of these cases.

Our law firm is committed to giving victims the latest news, information, and developments in the OneWheel class action lawsuit:

November 1, 2024: No New Cases in MDL

No new cases were added to this MDL last month, leaving the total number of pending cases sitting at 88. The hope is to get these cases settled soon.

October 1, 2024: 4 New Cases Added to MDL

The OneWheel class action MDL added four new cases last month, bringing the total number of pending cases up to 88. You are not seeing many new lawsuits because most lawyers have raised their bar in terms of the level of injuries they will accept.

Why? We are learning that there is limited insurance and OneWheel is only so big. So the good news is that there will likely be settlements in this litigation. The bad news is that a lot of victims with viable claims are having a harder time finding a lawyer than they would have last year.

September 3, 2024: 84 Cases in MDL

There are now 84 pending cases in the OneWheel injury MDL. That is an increase of only about 20 cases since the start of the summer.

September 1, 2024: Our Firm Is No Longer Taking New Cases

The good news is there could be settlement on the horizon. The bad news is that, like most law firms now, we are no longer taking new claims.

August 27, 2024: Settlement Talks

A settlement conference was held involving the parties and their insurance companies. The was not settlement agreement but another settlement conference is set for November 12, 2024, replacing the previously planned October 1, 2024, date.

The defendant will share its financial information with the insurance companies under a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). The parties will exchange their coverage briefs with each other and the insurers by September 23, 2024, with the insurers responding by October 22, 2024. Any further updates to the court, whether confidential or shared, are due by November 5, 2024.

July 16, 2024: New MDL Ruling

The MDL judge has delivered a mixed ruling on Future Motion’s motion to dismiss. But what really matters is none of the key allegations have been slashed.

The plaintiffs have alleged, as you know, that Onewheel devices, designed for personal transportation, possess a defect causing riders to be ejected from the board, resulting in severe injuries or death. The court found these allegations sufficient to claim that Onewheels are unsafe for ordinary use, thereby denying the defendant’s motion to dismiss the implied warranty claims. However, the court dismissed the breach of contract claim with leave to amend, as plaintiffs need to specify their requested remedies.

Regarding the unjust enrichment claims, the court agreed with the defendant that the plaintiffs failed to adequately allege a defect and defendant’s knowledge of it, leading to these claims also being dismissed with leave to amend. The defendant’s motion to strike class allegations was denied as premature, with the Court ruling that such issues are better addressed at the class certification stage after adequate discovery.

The breach of express warranty counts were dismissed without leave to amend. The remaining counts were dismissed with leave to amend to more adequately allege a defect and reliance. Plaintiffs were given 30 days to file an amended complaint consistent with the MDL judge’s order.

Interestingly, the judge allows that plaintiffs may request an extension to amend the complaint if needed for settlement discussions.

June 15, 2024 – OneWheel Settlement

There are a lot of OneWheel settlement rumors.

June 14, 2024 – Punitive Damages Sought

A plaintiff has filed a motion seeking to amend their complaint to include claims for punitive damages under California law and to add Future Motion MFG LLC as a defendant. This particular case revolves around the alleged defects of the Onewheel Pint X.

Future Motion strongly opposed this amendment, arguing that the Washington Product Liability Act governs the case, which precludes punitive damages. They maintain that, even if California law were applicable, the plaintiffs have not provided specific factual allegations to justify punitive damages. Furthermore, Future Motion argues that adding its manufacturing subsidiary as a defendant would be futile since the plaintiffs have not identified any specific manufacturing defects.

The plaintiffs contend that Future Motion acted with malice by not recalling the product sooner and by inadequately warning users of potential malfunctions. You can see why Future Motion would be fighting tooth and nail to keep punitive damage counts our of these lawsuits. The company’s response to the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission warnings will anger jurors.

June 4, 2024 – New OneWheel Injury Lawsuit

A new Future Motion lawsuit was filed last week. A Washington was riding on his Onewheel XR when it suddenly stopped, which threw him off the device and onto the street. The accident caused him to have a dislocated elbow that needed surgery. He also broke multiple bones in his right forearm and elbow.

This suit was filed in Washington but will get transferred to the MDL.

June 3, 2024 – MDL Adds 10 New Cases

Another 10 new cases were transferred into the OneWheel injury class action MDL over the last month. There are now 65 total cases pending in the MDL.

May 16, 2024 – Cases Chosen for Trial

During the last case management conference, the OneWheel MDL judge approved six representative personal injury/wrongful death cases proposed by both parties, finding no objections to the selections. The approved cases are:

At the next status conference in July, the court expects to pick trial dates for these cases.

May 6, 2024 – Agenda for MDL Conference

OneWheel attorneys on both sides have submitted a proposed agenda for the third Future Motion Case Management Conference scheduled via Zoom on May 9, 2024, at 4:30 p.m. EST. Here are the key points from the agenda:

May 1, 2024 – 13 New Cases Added to MDL

13 new cases were added to the OneWheel class action MDL over the last month. That brings the total number of OneWheel injury cases in the MDL up to 55.

April 26, 2024 – Plaintiff Wants to Enforce OneWheel Settlement Agreement

The plaintiff is seeking to enforce an agreement with OneWheel to what he says was a binding agreement last December to pay him a $50,000 OneWheel settlement. A month later, Future Motion’s lawyer sent an email. claimed that the case would not be settled because the self-insured retention waiver was not met. Then, FutureMotion named this case as its choice for the first bellwether trial in the MDL.

Future Motion acknowledges that an agreement on the final settlement amount for the plaintiff was reached. But the company claims that the settlement agreement was conditional upon reaching a sufficient number of tentative settlements in each policy period, which would then activate a waiver of the self-insured retention by Future Motion’s insurance provider. Its motion claims that the plaintiff’s OneWheel lawyers were informed of this condition.

I’m tempted to explain the self-insured retention issue and get into the details of all this because they are interesting. But you are unlikely to care about the nuances here. What you care about is that this case settled for $50,000, and it is the exact case that the defendants now want to make the first bellwether.

What does this mean for expected compensation payouts? Future Motion wants the very worst cases to go to trial first because they set a precedent for future settlement amounts for the remaining OneWheel lawsuits. So we now have a decent idea of what Future Motion views as a floor for settlement amounts in the OneWheel litigation, and that is useful information.

We also learned that there have already been a number of OneWheel settlements for accidents in 2019 and at least two settlements for accidents that occurred in 2020.

April 19, 2024 – Is There a OneWheel Settlement on the Horizon?

In-person settlement conferences for the OneWheel MDL are scheduled for August 13, 2024, and October 1, 2024. Both conferences will begin at 10:00 AM and will take place in Courtroom B on the 15th Floor in San Francisco. Settlement Conference Statements are due by August 6, 2024.

Will Future Motion offer reasonable compensation payouts for victims at this settlement conference? That remains to be seen. But there is no question Future Motion wants to get out of this litigation and avoid bankruptcy. Few class action lawsuits reach a settlement without trials or at least trial dates looming overhead. But this litigation could be the exception.

April 15, 2024 – New OneWheel Lawsuit Filed

A new OneWheel lawsuit was filed in federal court in Florida on Friday.

In Zurheide v. Future Motion, the plaintiff was riding a Pint X OneWheel last year in Boca Raton, Florida, when the device suddenly and unexpectedly malfunctioned. It’s a pretty classic case—while operating it normally, the OneWheel shut off abruptly and nosedived, causing the front of the board to hit the ground and eject the plaintiff. This accident resulted in the plaintiff fracturing his foot and heel, which subsequently required surgical intervention involving the implantation of hardware.

This looks like a strong case for settlement. The accident caused serious injuries and was caused by the exact problem that is the core of this litigation.

This case will get transferred to the OneWheel MDL in California, where all OneWheel suits in federal court are housed.

April 11, 2024 – Future Motion Picks Representative Death Cases

Yesterday, lawyers for Future Motion filed a proposal naming three potential bellwether candidate lawsuits, as the initial case management order required. The cases include two from Florida and a third case from Texas. The plaintiffs will nominate their own representative cases next week.

Why is a bellwether trial so crucial in an MDL? A bellwether trial will serve as a test case among a group of lawsuits consolidated in an MDL, providing both parties and the court with insight into how juries might respond to evidence and legal arguments. This process helps forecast the outcomes of similar cases within the MDL, potentially leading to settlements for the remaining cases and streamlining the legal process. It also puts pressure on FutureMotion to settle before there is even a trial.

April 1, 2024 – 43 Cases in the MDL

As of April 1, 2024, there are 43 pending cases in the OneWheel class action MDL (In re: Future Motion Inc. Prod. Liab. Lit). Only one new case was added to the MDL over the last 30 days. Our lawyers are seeing a steady stream of new potential claims, but not nearly as many as at the beginning of the year. This is a good thing for the OneWheel settlement amounts victims can hope to see. Why? Fewer lawsuits make it easier for FutureMotion to over reasonable compensation payouts without going into bankruptcy.

March 20, 2024 – New OneWheel Lawsuit

A Florida woman filed a new OneWheel lawsuit last week. She alleges she was riding a OneWheel Pint X in 2022 when, unexpectedly and without any prior indication, the OneWheel Pint X experienced a “nosedive,” resulting in her being ejected from the board and forcefully hitting the ground. This sudden incident led to significant injuries for the woman due to the unexpected fall from the OneWheel Pint X. This lawsuit was filed in Florida and will be transferred into the MDL.

February 24, 2024 – Onewheel Settlement Talks

The parties involved in the case have mutually proposed that Magistrate Judge Laurel Beeler oversee their settlement discussions. Following this recommendation, the court has assigned Magistrate Judge Beeler to facilitate all settlement efforts in this multidistrict litigation.

The first settlement conference is tomorrow. There is a possibility of early Onewheel settlements. Should you bet on an early resolution? No.

February 2, 2024 – More on Bellwether Trials

The MDL judge is set to approve six representative cases for trial. Each party must submit a proposal listing up to three personal injury/wrongful death cases that they consider emblematic of the broader personal injury and wrongful death lawsuit within this MDL.

Proposals must be submitted to the court by no later than April 10, 2024. Should there be any contention regarding the representativeness of a case chosen by the opposing party, the concerned counsel must brief their objections. Judge Freeman also suggests that the parties have alternative cases ready, should there be an acceptance of any objections.

January 19, 2024 – Bellwether Trials

This litigation is moving quickly. We are not usually talking about bellwether trials this early.

What are bellwether trials? Bellwether trials in MDLs are like test cases. A few chosen cases are tried first to gauge how others might go. The faster you get to bellwether trials, the faster you get to a settlement.

Plaintiffs’ lawyers are ready to roll. They suggest specific cases (Bunnell and Oatridge) as representative of the most serious injuries, including fatal injuries. They also propose selecting additional cases representing less serious injuries.

The defendants? They want what defendants always want: to slow down. They argue that it is premature to select representative cases given the recent initiation of many Onewheel lawsuits and the expectation of more cases to be filed. They also suggest a process where both the plaintiffs’ lead counsel and the defendant select and then strike certain cases, proceeding with the remaining ones for discovery.

January 8, 2024 – First Status Conference Set

Judge Labson has scheduled the first status conference for January 18, 2024 to discuss the multidistrict litigation (MDL) for OneWheel injuries. This conference will allow lawyers to coordinate with the judge on the things needed to get the ball rolling in this new litigation. The order also requires both plaintiffs and defendants to submit preliminary statements outlining their understanding of the facts and key legal issues.

As we reported on December 9th, this comes after the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation decided to consolidate all OneWheel injury cases for pretrial proceedings in the Northern District of California last month.

December 11, 2023 – 5 More Onewheel Cases Filed

Five new Onewheel product liability lawsuits were filed against Future Motion Inc. last month. 2cases were filed in Colorado, 2 were filed in the Western District of North Carolina, and the other case was filed in the Eastern District of Michigan.

December 9, 2023 – Onewheel Class Action Lawsuit

Future Motion Inc., the manufacturer of Onewheel electric skateboards, successfully petitioned the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation to consolidate 31 injury lawsuits into a single pretrial proceeding in a California federal court.the pretrial proceedings will coordinate both personal injury and wrongful death claims and, consumer economic loss class claims (which will be an annoying distraction, honestly).

These Onewheel lawsuits, filed in 14 different federal district courts with more to come, allege that riders were injured when their Onewheels unexpectedly stopped or shut off, causing them to fall. The multidistrict proceeding will take place in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California under Judge Beth Labson Freeman, an Obama nominee that presided over Mickelson v. PGA Tour, Inc.

The JPML agreed to consolidation because the lawsuits share similar allegations regarding how the plaintiffs were injured, citing issues with the design, manufacture, and warnings of the skateboards.

November 29, 2023 – Panel Will Consider MDL Request

On Thursday, a group of federal judges will convene to consider whether all lawsuits related to Onewheel injuries should be unified under a single judge for coordinated pretrial processes in a multidistrict litigation (MDL).

Our lawyers are getting a ton of calls on these cases. These lawsuits all contend that flaws in the board’s design, particularly in its safety mechanism known as “pushback,” have led to severe accidents and injuries. Unlike many class action lawsuits, the defendants are encouraging consolidation.

November 3, 2023 – New OneWheel Lawsuit

A new OneWheel lawsuit, Ogan v. Future Motion, was filed yesterday in a federal court in North Carolina. The case involves a consumer who has raised allegations of sustaining personal injuries and economic damages as a consequence of using the company’s OneWheel devices. The plaintiff, a resident of Robeson County, North Carolina, claims to have suffered severe cuts, scrapes, and a broken wrist due to what is implied to be defects or issues with the product in question.

In 2018, the plaintiff made an online purchase of a OneWheel device, starting what would become a comprehensive collection over the years. He was a huge OneWheel fan. He owned every model the company offered.

In April 2021, he was on a routine ride on a smooth, paved road. Cruising at a steady pace of 15 miles per hour on their OneWheel XR, a device ostensibly known for its stability and performance, the customer faced a sudden malfunction.

The device ejected the rider, sending them tumbling onto the pavement. The fall resulted in not just a momentary shock but severe physical injuries. The road’s unforgiving surface inflicted painful road rash, and a more serious consequence was a broken wrist, compromising the rider’s mobility and daily function.

October 30, 2023 – Future Motion OneWheel Class Action Lawsuit

There are now 31 OneWheel lawsuits spread out over 15 states. So, does a OneWheel class action lawsuit against Future Motion make sense?

In their class action lawsuit, all 31 plaintiffs allege injuries from unexpected shutdowns or stops of the Onewheel device. Most of these suits echo a common narrative: riders fall and get injured because the Onewheel halts unexpectedly. All the plaintiffs have lodged complaints grounded in product liability.

In fact, many of the OneWheel legal complaints are almost identical, sometimes copied verbatim across different complaints. Lawyers are nothing if not copycats.

Centralizing these cases, according to Future Motion, would ensure coordinated discovery, prevent potential contradictory rulings, and be more efficient and convenient for all parties involved.

Interestingly, Future Motion agrees that an MDL class action is warranted. The company suggests the Middle District of Florida as the ideal jurisdiction for this consolidation. They say their choice is strategic; it’s not only because the district has the highest number of related cases but also due to its familiarity with Future Motion litigations. Additionally, it says Florida’s geographical position would be convenient for most parties, witnesses, and lawyers. Of course, Future Motion wants them in this district in Florida because it thinks it is a good venue for them. But they might be wrong.

Future Motion’s Onewheel is a self-balancing, one-wheeled transportation device powered by a battery that is often described as an electric skateboard. Operation of Future Motion’s Onewheel is controlled and/or monitored, in part, by an “app” installed on users’ smartphones. The Onewheel app allows users to view their total miles, battery life, speed, and other information. The published maximum speed for the Onewheel Pint X is 18 miles per hour.

To ride the Onewheel, the rider must step on the back footpad, then place their foot on the front footpad, and slowly bring themselves up to a balanced position. Once the rider is balanced, the Onewheel’s motor engages. The rider can then lean forward to move forward and lean backward to slow down. To turn, the rider puts pressure on either their toes or heels.

Over the years, different models, varying mainly in size and battery range, have been launched. Designed with self-balancing capabilities, the Onewheel offers a unique riding experience. Riders control their speed and direction by leaning forward or backward and applying pressure on either the toes or heels. No one doubts that it is fun to ride. The question is whether it is safe.

The Onewheel will provide the rider with “pushback” when approaching the device’s limits during use. When the device reaches a pushback situation, the nose of the board will lift to slow the rider down. Often, however, instead of a pushback, the Onewheel will simply shut off and nosedive, resulting in the rider being thrown from the device.

Different factors impact when and what will cause the Onewheel to shut down and nosedive, including the rider’s weight, tire pressure, wind direction, battery level, rider stance, and the grade of incline or decline. Thus, predicting exactly when a nosedive will occur or what will cause one is practically impossible. The primary cause of “pushback” nosediving is velocity. When experiencing velocity pushback, the rider will feel the nose of the board rise to various degrees when a certain velocity is reached. Often, velocity pushback occurs at a speed lower than that of the maximum due to the above-mentioned factors.

Another form of pushback occurs when the Onewheel is nearing battery depletion. This pushback purportedly alerts riders by elevating the nose dramatically. When the Onewheel purportedly senses that the batteries are about to be damaged by over-depletion, the board will shut off entirely, leaving the rider suddenly and unexpectedly off-balance, often resulting in the rider being thrown from the board.

On November 16, 2022, the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (“CPSC”) issued a warning to consumers to stop the use of Onewheel products due to the ejection hazard. The press release notes, “Future Motion has refused to agree to an acceptable recall of the product. CPSC intends to continue pursuing a recall for consumers. CPSC urges consumers not to buy the Onewheel. If you already own one or purchased one, do not use it due to the ejection hazard.”

What was the company’s response? It pushed back. Through a statement on – of course – TikTok by its CEO, Future Motion contended that their OneWheel Devices are widely misunderstood, rather than inherently dangerous. The company also challenged the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s (CPSC) recall notice by arguing that the CPSC failed to clearly identify any specific defect in the devices.

A spokesperson for OneWheel expressed their perspective on the matter: “The federal agency is attempting to dismantle our business. To give you an overview, just recently, the CPSC issued a directive demanding a recall of every OneWheel ever produced. Our response was to respectfully decline.”

This argument stopped holding water after more injuries and deaths. Future Motion stopped fighting. In September 2023, it supported a new recall notice affecting 300,000 of these self-balancing skateboards, in which the CPSC urgently advised consumers to cease usage of the skateboards. The notice highlighted that if the boards’ operational limits are surpassed, the skateboards may fail to balance the rider, creating a significant risk of crashes that could lead to grave injuries or even fatalities.

Some of the highest OneWheel settlement amounts will be for victims who were injured between the first and second CPSC announcements. Keeping this product on the market was a major screw-up that even OneWheel has to concede at this point.

Over the last year, a rapidly growing number of product liability lawsuits have been filed against Future Motion for injuries caused by the Onewheel nosedive defect. All of the lawsuits allege that Onewheel riders suffered severe injuries when the one-wheeled scooter nosedived and stopped suddenly, violently ejecting the rider off the device.

As of September 2023, over 30 Onewheel recall lawsuits have already been filed against Future Motion in federal courts across the country. Future Motion has already filed a motion with the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML), seeking to consolidate and centralize all claims before one U.S. District Judge for coordinated discovery and pretrial proceedings.

The motion for consolidation was granted. Onewheel lawsuits are now consolidated into a new class action MDL in California. The cases will then go through a consolidated discovery process, after which a few sample cases will be selected for bellwether test trials. The results of the test trials are generally used to facilitate a global settlement deal in which Future Motion agrees to pay all claimants certain amounts. Our lawyers talk more about this above. in the updates.

Anyone who was riding on a Onewheel electronic skateboard and suffered serious physical injuries when the Onewheel device suddenly stopped or nosedived (or otherwise did not function properly, causing an accident) may be eligible to file a Onewheel injury lawsuit.

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