Man suing Sony for after claims his Xperia smartphone exploded leaving him with third degree burns

A MAN is suing Sony after one of the company’s smartphones exploded and ripped the skin off all his right-hand fingers. WARNING: GRAPHIC.

Tom Collins, 36, received third degree burns when his Sony Xperia Z2 smartphone burst into a flames as he was texting. Picture: SWNS/Mega

WARNING: GRAPHIC

A MAN has been left with third-degree burns to both of his hands after his Sony Xperia Z2 exploded and burst into a fireball while he was sending a text.

Tom Collins is now suing Sony for $16,000, claiming the smartphone ripped the skin off all his right-hand fingers, while also injuring his left.

“It got really hot and I heard a thud. I turned it over and there was soot everywhere, then a flame from the back,” he described the incident in his legal statement, reported The Sun.

“In seconds it erupted like a fireball. It felt like my hands had been scraped on the road at 80km/h. I dropped it and the carpet went up too. I got water to put out the flames.”

It took three months to recover from these injuries. Picture: SWNS/Mega

The 36-year-old said as a result of his three-month recovery he lost his job and girlfriend, while also still having no sensation in a finger and thumb.

Lawyer Jonathan Flattery said Sony is denying liability as the damaged handset had been in contact with water, although he claims the water damage occurred post-explosion.

“Sony said the phone’s water damaged, which misses the point that Tom had to throw water on it,” he said.

Mr Collins said he lost his job and girlfriend during the recovery. Picture: SWNS/Mega

As Mr Collins is still using the damaged handset with a third party battery, Sony is also allegedly refusing to replace the handset and accept liability.

Mr Flattery said despite Sony’s response, his client will be continuing to seek damages.

“Tom purchased his phone from a reputable manufacturer. He did not expect that through normal use his phone would explode resulting in him sustaining burns and serious injuries,” he said.

“We’re concerned that cause may not be isolated and other users of this phone are at risk of a similar accident occurring,”

A blown-up Samsung Galaxy Note 7 smartphone.

Last year, Samsung was forced to have multibillion-dollar global recall of the Galaxy Note 7 following exploding batteries which caused a series of fires.

More than 51,000 Australians forced to hand back their new purchases, with Kantar Worldpanel ComTech recently claiming the mishap may have cost Samsung the title of Australia’s biggest selling smartphone maker.

Samsung’s share of the Australian market dropped five per cent between February and May, while Apple’s slice grew five per cent to helped the company steal the title.

Samsung’s freshly showcased Note 8 will feature a smaller, redesigned battery for greater safety, as well as new, more advanced features to convince buyers to return.

Have you ever had a phone explode? Continue the conversation in the comments below or with Matthew Dunn on Facebook and Twitter.

Originally published as Man suing Sony for after claims his Xperia smartphone exploded leaving him with third degree burns