Portable Blenders Are All Kinds Of Dangerous, Lawsuit Alleges

Why drive to a Jamba or shell out Starbucks money for a blended beverage when you could pull a mini blender out of your bag and whip one up yourself? The convenience is tempting, but a new class action lawsuit alleges that BlendJet2, a portable blender made by the BlendJet brand, poses serious safety risks that may not be worth it, even for a fresh smoothie.

The complaint was filed in New York against BlendJet and alleges the company knowingly sold its portable, cordless, chargeable BlendJet2 blenders with a defect that causes the appliance to break or malfunction "within a short period of time." The filing also alleges BlendJet misrepresents the capabilities of the product and uses "inferior materials" to manufacture it, which is the alleged reason for the defects.

Three specific defects are called out in the complaint:

• The blender's blades, which allegedly either break or completely detach from the unit
• The charging cable, which allegedly has a tendency to melt
• The battery, which allegedly overheats and sometimes catches fire

The plaintiffs argue that BlendJet is aware of these issues, since numerous negative reviews have been posted and complaints have been made to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Back in June, Foodsided hailed the BlendJet2 as a "must-have dorm room essential for college freshmen," touting the convenience of the device and ease of use. Foodsided did note it's important to layer ingredients in a certain order within the jar when using the blender, and that it might take a few 20-second blends to actually break it all down. This advice echoes what the BlendJet's user guide states, and it's not uncommon for full-size blenders to have similar stipulations. Food & Wine also listed the BlendJet2 as one of its top six personal blenders, "according to [the publication's] rigorous testing."

Despite these positive reviews, the filing alleges BlendJet is fully aware of the defects in its product yet continues to market it with "misleading" claims, including that the device has "[b]ig blender performance" and "powers through anything in 20 seconds flat: ice, frozen fruit, leafy greens & more."

Consumer Reports conducted its own research and product testing on the BlendJet2 earlier this year and found that its blade completely broke off during a durability test. However, despite the claims of the recent lawsuit filing, CR did not find any issues with the product with cables or battery in its charging tests.

"We are concerned by the number of complaints and the severity of issues consumers are reporting about the BlendJet 2," said Ashita Kapoor, Consumer Reports' associate director of product safety. "Combined with what we saw in our labs, the data has prompted us to ask the government to take a closer look at this product and to advise consumers to be aware of the safety issues raised."

In response to CR's testing and results, a BlendJet spokesperson said the product was "safe when used as intended."

The plaintiffs in the class action suit are seeking a jury trial as well as an award of compensatory, statutory, and punitive damages for themselves and consumers represented by the lawsuit. In the meantime, you might want to switch to a corded blender for your morning smoothies, or hit a local shop instead.