John’s Heating Service v. Lamb

On October 15, 1991, Michael and Cynthia Lamb (plaintiffs) contacted John’s Heating Service (John’s Heating) (defendant) to investigate a problem with their furnace. An employee from John’s Heating arrived at the Lambs’ house, and the Lambs stated that the furnace was not working properly and appeared to be distributing soot and causing a smell of fuel. Ms. Lamb showed the employee Bounce fabric-softener sheets she had been using as filters on the floor vents that had been collecting soot. The employee stated that he did not believe the Bounce sheets indicated furnace trouble and that the house only needed cleaning. The employee leveled the fuel tank, relit the furnace, and left. The Lambs began suffering from physical effects that they later alleged were from carbon-monoxide poisoning. On January 31, 1993, the Lambs contacted a different furnace-repair company, Chase Plumbing, to inspect their furnace. The Chase Plumbing employee told the Lambs their furnace was likely circulating carbon monoxide and other gases through their home and they should not use the furnace until they could replace it. The Lambs replaced the furnace six days later. The Lambs alleged that they suffered from physical and neurological problems caused by long-term, low-level carbon-monoxide exposure from the malfunctioning furnace. The Lambs filed suit against John’s Heating on December 23, 1993. John’s Heating asserted the statute of limitations as an affirmative defense and moved for summary judgment. The court denied John’s Heating’s motion, and the jury rendered a verdict for the Lambs. John’s Heating appealed.