SaferProducts incident

Failure type

Fire / ignition

Incident narrative

SaferProducts.gov consumer incident report 20190710-B9DAA-2147379967. Severity: Incident, No Injury. Product: Sears 139.01566310 (4 burner, stainless steel gas grill, with side burner and rotisserie searing burner, Kenmore model # 139.01566310, item number 640-04921798-7). Incident: A gas grill, sold by Sears, under model number 139.01566310 contains a defectively manufactured part, "Drip tray Assembly", part # CH3017361. This part is a piece of shaped galvanized stainless steel, acting to catch grease/fat drippings from food during cooking. It also provides a thermal barrier between the burners and the LP tank. Unfortunately, this part, through no fault of the consumer, or lack of maintenance, rusts away and disintegrates, allowing the flame from the burner to be unobstructed within inches of the LP tank. Sears has been made aware of this defect, and the grill has been the subject of a class action. However, Sears refuses to provide a replacement part, or to have a replacement part manufactured to address this defect. When I open the lid of my grill, I can see my LP tank, and have stopped using the grill. The bottom frame of the grill, below the firebox is enclosed so, even the slightest leak of propane, or an improperly tightened hose would result in a catastrophic explosion, due to this failed part. When I attempted to order the part from Sears, the order was taken, money was paid, but Sears had no intention of fulfilling the order - I eventually received a refund. However, Sears does not plan to address the safety issue with this grill.