Opinion ID: 1864168
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Defects in the Mobile Home

Text: Mr. Crawford alleged that by expressly warranting that his mobile home was free from defects in materials and workmanship and that it had been constructed in compliance with federal guidelines, Palm Harbor fraudulently suppressed the fact that the home actually had numerous defects, which, he alleged, Palm Harbor was aware of when it sold him the mobile home. He also alleged that Palm Harbor suppressed that fact with the intent to induce him to purchase his Palm Harbor mobile home, and that he suffered damage as a proximate result. Palm Harbor argues that under Alabama law a fraud claim will not lie for a breach of a warranty, and that Mr. Crawford's fraudulent suppression claim should not have been submitted to the jury. Citing Rhodes v. General Motors Corp., 621 So.2d 945 (Ala. 1993), Palm Harbor argues that an allegation of a breach of an express warranty to repair will support only a breach of contract claim and not a tort claim. Moreover, Palm Harbor argues that Mr. Crawford could not have relied to his detriment on any statement or representation contained in its warranty because, it says, Mr. Crawford did not read the warranty until well after he had purchased the mobile home. In response, Mr. Crawford argues that he presented substantial evidence in support of a claim of fraudulent suppression. He refers this Court to certain language contained in the written warranty that the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) requires to be given with the sale of a new manufactured home. That document, which is a standard HUD form, states, in relevant part: To induce the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development to insure a loan under Title I of the National Manufactured Housing Act for the purchase of the new manufactured home identified above, and to induce the borrowers to purchase said manufactured home, the manufacturer of said home does hereby warrant to the borrowers, and to their heirs and assigns, that: 1. The manufactured home identified above has been constructed in compliance with the manufactured home standards prescribed by the Secretary in accordance with the National Manufactured Housing Construction and Safety Standards Act of 1974, 42 U.S.C. 5401 et seq., as evidenced by a label or tag affixed to the manufactured home, and is free from defects in materials and workmanship. 2. The manufacturer will take appropriate action to correct any nonconformity with the Federal manufactured home standards or any defects in materials or workmanship that become evident within one year after the date of delivery of the manufactured home.... (Emphasis added.) Mr. Crawford contends that by signing this HUD form, Palm Harbor represented that the mobile home he was purchasing was free of defects and suppressed from him the fact that the home actually contained many defects. In its order denying Palm Harbor's post-judgment motions, the trial court stated the following regarding this claim: This court finds that Palm Harbor had a duty to the Plaintiffs, created by statute, not to suppress material facts from Plaintiffs relating to defects in or damages to the mobile home which were known to Palm Harbor. There was undisputed evidence that after the mobile home was constructed, but before it was delivered to the Plaintiffs, Palm Harbor issued a warranty, pursuant to requirements of the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.... . . . . There was substantial evidence from which the jury could determine, by a clear and convincing standard, that Palm Harbor knew the mobile home was not constructed according to the required standards, and was defective when it made representations in the warranty to the contrary. Although we find no error with the trial court's reasoning regarding the application of the facts of this case to the elements of a fraudulent suppression claim, we note that Palm Harbor is correct in arguing that under Alabama law the breach of an express warranty will not support a fraud claim. This Court has previously held that the language of an express warranty to repair cannot be construed as a representation that a product is entirely free of defects. Hughes v. Hertz Corp., 670 So.2d 882 (Ala.1995); Rhodes v. General Motors Corp., 621 So.2d 945 (Ala. 1993); Tittle v. Steel City Oldsmobile GMC Truck, Inc., 544 So.2d 883 (Ala.1989). Rather than guaranteeing that the product is free of defects, an express warranty to repair anticipates that any defects detected during the term of the warranty will be remedied. Hughes, supra; Rhodes, supra; Tittle, supra. Likewise, the Crawfords each admitted during trial that, following the Palm Harbor factory tour, they were made to understand that Palm Harbor's warranty meant that Palm Harbor would come out and fix any problems with their mobile home that occurred during the first year. Because the language of an express warranty to repair will not support a fraud claim based on a representation that the product is free of defects, the trial court erred in denying Palm Harbor's directed verdict motion on Mr. Crawford's fraudulent suppression claim and submitting it to the jury. Thus, this fraudulent suppression claim was a bad count, and the judgment based on the jury's general verdict in favor of Mr. Crawford must be reversed and the cause remanded for a new trial on any good counts.