STEVEN D. MERRYDAY, District Judge.
Under the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act (MMWA), Steven Thomas sues (Doc. 1) Winnebago Industries, Inc., and Freightliner Custom Chassis Corporation for breach of written warranties on a motor home that Thomas purchased from a third party. Under Rule 12(b)(6), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Freightliner moves (Doc. 6) to dismiss for failure to state a claim because Thomas "does not plead privity with Freightliner" and because "Freightliner's warranty does not cover" "the claimed defects Freightliner allegedly failed or refused to adequately repair."
Freightliner argues that although Thomas sues under the MMWA, Thomas "has no independent cause of action under the MMWA" because the MMWA "only borrows state law causes of action." (Doc. 6 at 3) According to Freightliner, a complaint asserting a claim under Florida law for breach of a written warranty must allege privity between the plaintiff and the warrantor.
Thomas sues under 15 U.S.C. § 2310(d) of the MMWA, which states:
"If the terms of the statute are clear and unambiguous, the inquiry ends and we simply give effect to the plain language of the statute." Toomer v. City Cab, 443 F.3d 1191, 1194 (10th Cir. 2006) (Kelly, J.); accord Sides v. Macon County Greyhound Park, Inc., 725 F.3d 1276, 1282 (11th Cir. 2013). The MMWA expressly creates a private right of action, by which a consumer may sue a warrantor for breach of a written warranty.
By definition, the MMWA limits an implied-warranty claim to a claim "arising under State law."
Freightliner argues that the warranty "does not cover the issues with" Thomas's motor home that Thomas "alleges Freightliner failed or refused to adequately repair." (Doc. 6 at 4) Freightliner states that Thomas attached (Doc. 1-5) to the complaint only a summary of the warranty and that the actual warranty that "may apply to" Thomas's motor home fails to cover the "issues [Thomas] complains of." (Doc. 6 at 4, 5)
No federal rule requires Thomas to attach the warranty to the complaint. See AGSC Marine Ins. Co. v. Spectrum Underground, Inc., 2012 WL 2087441, at *2 (M.D. Fla. June 8, 2012) (Moody, J.) ("Although [a] failure [to attach a written contract] would result in a dismissal, without prejudice, of [a] breach of contract claim under Florida law . . . the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which apply to this case, do not have an analogous requirement.") (emphasis in original). Instead, under Rule 8(a)(2), Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, the complaint must include "a short and plain statement of the claim showing that the pleader is entitled to relief." The complaint alleges (1) that Freightliner "promised in the [written] warranty that Freightliner would repair defects and replace defective parts" in Thomas's motor home (Doc. 1 ¶ 18) and (2) that Freightliner breached the warranty by failing to repair defects in the motor home's "alignment, jack system, electrical system, air conditioner, slides, and interior." (Doc. 1 ¶¶ 19-25) Because on a motion to dismiss the allegations in the complaint "are accepted as true," Key v. Lundy, 563 Fed. Appx. 758, 759 (11th Cir. 2014) (per curiam), the complaint sufficiently states a claim under the MMWA for breach of a written warranty.
Accordingly, Freightliner's motion (Doc. 6) to dismiss is DENIED.