Federal Judge – P320 Class Action Lawsuit Will Proceed
A federal judge decided not to dismiss a class-action lawsuit against P320 maker Sig Sauer and instead will move forward. This decision is a setback for Sig Sauer as they have been battling lawsuits shortly after the public discovered that the P320 pistol might not be drop safe.
Early identification of a P320 drop-fire issue —
In 2014 Sig Sauer's P320 pistol gained notoriety for its durability and modularity. In 2017, Sig beat out competitors to earn the government's military handgun contract. The Army notified Sig Sauer during rigorous testing that they discovered the P320 had drop safety issues and could fire if dropped at a specific height and angle. Sig appears to have addressed those issues with component modifications.
Shortly after, or simultaneously, a civilian firearms shop called Omaha Outdoors took a civilian-market P320 and demonstrated the drop-safety issue on a video posted to YouTube. The case quickly became a drama amongst gun owners. We posted what we knew at the time in this article.
Sig's response —
Sig didn't initially issue a safety recall and asserted the P320 was safe. However, later in 2017, Sig offered a ‘voluntary upgrade' to civilian P320s. The upgrade addressed the issues that allowed the P320 to fire when dropped.
Reports surfaced of reported P320s firing rounds without anyone pulling the trigger, even when someone didn't drop the gun. Some of these instances involved guns that had already received the upgrade. Some cases undoubtedly had nothing to do with the gun's design and resulted from user negligence. However, it became hard to separate fact from fiction and determine if the P320 was safe or not.
The original P320 Compact and XCompact, side-by-side.
Lawsuits against Sig Sauer —
It is not uncommon for companies to issue safety recalls and bulletins to fix issues with guns. And, contrary to gun-grabbing politicians, the PLCAA does not shield gun manufacturers from lawsuits. Gun manufacturers who purposely sell firearms with safety issues don't tend to stay in business long.
Sig Sauer settled some of the lawsuits out of court, but a 2019 lawsuit filed by an Arizona law enforcement officer called Derek Ortiz persisted. Eventually, many lawsuits, including Ofc. Ortiz's became a single class-action lawsuit.
When will the P320 drama end —
The judge's refusal to dismiss the civil suit against Sig Sauer doesn't mean the plaintiffs will win. Perhaps the judge's ruling will ultimately allow the Sig P320 drama to conclude. I am sure that as much as the plaintiffs want to move on, so does Sig Sauer. I don't have any skin in the game, and even I would prefer this chapter to end.
What do you guys think?
Here is a link to an update to this ongoing drama.
Why you are so in a hurry for, quote: “this drama to end.”? Lets see if the law suit has any merit. Are you a Sig fanboy and you don’t want any negative news about Sig to be published? In matters of gun safety, we should never rush. If the P 320 is safe, lets be proven beyond any doubt in a court of law.
No offense or disrespect intended.
The Real Person!
No, not a fanboy. And I clearly am not concerned with bad publicity for Sig, I wrote the article. I meant I look forward to the conclusion of the case so there is resolution and people can move on either trusting the gun or not. I don’t have any skin in the game either way.
I own a Sig P320 Compact that was purchased in early 2017. It underwent the “upgrade” process (all paid for by Sig) in 2019. Out of the box it is a very accurate pistol, have put about 2000 rounds through it. Last I saw (June 2022), there are about 50 lawsuits against Sig for the holster going off unintentionally. Some agencies (police and a Canadian military unit) that issued the P320 have taken them out of service.Trying to get to the bottom of the problem is problematic as the findings from lawsuits are often hidden by NDA’s enforced as part of the settlement. Since my EDC mode is appendix carry, the idea of the firearm discharging while holstering or while holstered is unsettling, therefore this pistol remains as a range pistol only, going to stick to my hammer fired P229 for concealed carry. Like the author, I hope this drama comes to an end and if Sig has to admit there is a flaw and issue a recall, so be it.
Typo: should read “lawsuit against Sig for the PISTOL going off”.
Question .who goes around dropping their gun to see if it will go off? If you don’t know how to handle a pistol you have no business owning one
It’s not just a drop issue. Been a number of incidents of 320’s going off in holsters as well. I like my 226, hoping this is resolved soon.
Does SIG have a voluntary upgrade program for the p320.?