A nationwide class action lawsuit against Grand Design RV, LLC and Winnebago Industries, Inc. has been filed on behalf of thousands of consumers across the United States. Grand Design RV is owned by Winnebago Industries.
The suit alleges that numerous Grand Design RV models suffer from serious structural defects—particularly frame failures—that have significantly disrupted the lives of affected owners.
Allegations of Defective Products and Deceptive Marketing
The complaint asserts that Grand Design knowingly sold RVs with defective frames while engaging in aggressive and misleading marketing tactics. The law firm Weitz & Luxenberg seeks a court order compelling a recall of the defective RVs, as well as monetary compensation and punitive damages for impacted consumers.
Impact on Consumers
According to James Bilsborrow, a partner at Weitz & Luxenberg and co-chair of the firm’s Consumer Protection practice, many of the firm’s clients invested more than $100,000 in what they believed would be safe recreational vehicles. However, these RVs allegedly turned out to be structurally unsound and unreliable for travel, posing safety risks not only to owners but to others on the road.
Bilsborrow explains that simply moving the RVs from one location to another can render them uninhabitable. In several cases, owners were displaced from their homes for months while their RVs underwent extensive repairs due to frame failures. Some were forced to stay with family, friends, or in hotels during this time.
Warranty Issues and Alleged Deception
The lawsuit further alleges that Grand Design created warranty coverage that is “largely illusory.” According to Bilsborrow, customers have faced significant obstacles when trying to exercise their warranty rights. The complaint details how restrictive company policies have made it difficult for consumers to obtain timely repairs—often requiring them to transport their RVs to Grand Design’s Indiana facility, a requirement many owners are unable to fulfill.
Models and Marketing During the Pandemic
The lawsuit specifically targets Grand Design RV models sold between 2020 and 2023, including:
• Reflection
• Influence
• Solitude
• Momentum
Weitz & Luxenberg alleges that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the defendants launched strategic marketing campaigns appealing to Americans’ desire for safe and flexible travel options. However, the firm claims these RVs were manufactured with defective frames unable to support typical usage, thereby devaluing the vehicles by tens of thousands of dollars and often rendering them uninhabitable.
Failure to Act and Alleged Profit Motive
Despite awareness of the defects, the defendants allegedly chose not to issue a recall or warn consumers. Instead, they continued to sell the RVs, conceal the issues, and prioritize profits. According to the lawsuit, these efforts generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue for the companies.
Claims of Consumer Fraud and Legal Violations
The class action complaint contends that had consumers been aware of the defective frames, they would not have purchased the RVs. In addition to a nationwide class, the lawsuit includes subclasses for residents in Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Minnesota, New Hampshire, and Ohio.
The firm alleges that the defendants engaged in misleading, false, or deceptive conduct in violation of multiple state consumer protection laws. The case also cites defective product design, fraudulent advertising practices, and failures in the manufacturing process, including cost-cutting measures and insufficient safety standards.
Weitz & Luxenberg is pursuing a jury trial and is seeking both monetary damages and injunctive relief.
Legal Resources and Contact Information
Consumers who purchased a Grand Design Reflection, Influence, Solitude, or Momentum RV between 2020 and 2023 may be eligible to join the class action lawsuit. Weitz & Luxenberg encourages affected individuals to contact the firm for a free consultation by calling (917) 529-9377.
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I am soooo glad I dumped the GD Reflection fifth wheel ….the thing was nothing but a lemon and dealer or factory would do nothing about warranty work needed. Buyer beware.
Sad to say, but the only winners in a class action suit are the lawyers. These cases go on for years and the litigants may get pennies on the dollar.
“Weitz & Luxenberg alleges that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the defendants launched strategic marketing campaigns appealing to Americans’ desire for safe and flexible travel options.”
Well, they did meet the flexible option.
One of YouTube’s Grand Design ambassadors, who travels around the country for a living in his GD 47′ Momentum fifth wheel, recently took it back to GD for some upgrades. One of the upgrades was apparently installing a new electrical system in his rig. GD had his rig between 4-6 weeks and gave him and his wife a loner 20″ TT, a new model, to use. When they went to pick up their Momentum, they were delayed by hours because the electrical system didn’t work. Seems to speak to the workers they hire and build or work on Your RV.
I gotta say it’s about time! I hope this is a wake up call for Thor and Forest River also.
Need to look at Keystone Montanas, too; particularly the larger split frame models reaching back to 2016.
I came here to say this too. There was an article (perhaps here on rvtravel?) mentioning a lot of those Montanas with undersize frames built by Lippert, and finger pointing between Lippert and Keystone. (“Not my fault, LCI built the frame!” vs “We built what Keystone spec’d”)
Hi, Jake. Here’s a link to one of our more recent flame flex posts. Have a great day. 😀 –Diane at RVtravel.com
We have a 2019 Solitude and I can firmly say that the issues are not restricted to 2020 and newer! We had “frame failure” and a wall failure as well. The frame failed due to insufficient and poor welds between the front riser and the longitudinal frame rails in the upper deck. Of the 6 joints, only 3 were welded, 2 on one side and 1 on the other. One of the 3 welds had also cracked. I feel this is what led to the cracked wall. This is as much on Lippert as it is on Grand Design as the frame is Lippert made. While GD ultimately did pay to fix our issues, the fight, stress and time it took to do it was to me unacceptable. Having said all that, we love our floorplan and plan to stick with it.
Thank you for the news, RV Travel! Wow! This suit appears to have teeth and may take a hunk.out of Winnebago/Grand Design. I look forward to seeing what becomes of this. Have a great day and safe travels!