LEGAL UPDATE: ALG Founder David Almeida Appointed Co-Lead Interim Counsel in CityMD Class Action Lawsuit
Legal update

HP Class Action Over Printer Scanning Limits Moves Forward

Overview

HP faces a class-action lawsuit for disabling scanning on all-in-one printers without ink. A federal judge denied HP’s motion to dismiss the case.

HP Faces Class-Action Lawsuit Over Printer Functionality

On Aug. 10, a federal judge ruled that HP Inc. must face a class-action lawsuit claiming that the company designs its “all-in-one” inkjet printers to disable scanning and faxing functions whenever a single printer ink cartridge runs low. The company had sought — for the second time — to dismiss the lawsuit on technical legal grounds but the court denied HP’s motion to dismiss.

Background on the HP Class-Action Case

The Almeida Law Group brought its case against HP in June 2022. “It is well-documented that ink is not required in order to scan or to fax a document, and it is certainly possible to manufacture an all-in-one printer that scans or faxes when the device is out of ink,” the plaintiffs wrote in their complaint. “Indeed, HP designs its all-in-one printer products so they will not work without ink. Yet HP does not disclose this fact to consumers.”