Update: January 23, 2025 (1:36 AM ET): Samsung has now shared an amended statement with us, attributing the incident to “external force.” Since the fire department’s investigation concluded that a thermal runaway event occurred, and per the user’s testimony, the phone was simply charging when the incident occurred, it’s unclear what the company means by referring to external force as the cause of the incident. Here’s the full, amended statement Samsung shared with us:
We stand behind the quality and safety of the millions of Samsung mobile devices in use across the world. While our analysis concluded external force was the cause, there was insufficient evidence to determine what was responsible for this isolated incident. We remain in contact with our customer to reach a resolution.
Update: January 22, 2026 (4:35 PM ET): A spokesperson for Samsung Electronics America has reached out to Android Authority and provided the following statement:
We stand behind the quality and safety of the millions of Samsung mobile devices in use across the country. While our analysis could not determine a root cause responsible for this isolated incident, we remain in contact with our customer to reach a resolution.
Update: January 22, 2026 (3:08 AM ET): Android Authority has since been in direct contact with the affected user, who has shared documentation with us. We’ve reviewed the local fire department report, which confirms a thermal runaway event, as well as written communication showing Samsung has offered compensation covering the phone, medical expenses, cleanup costs, and a separate pain-and-suffering amount. This confirms that the incident did occur as described and that Samsung has made the compensation offer described in the original Reddit post. We’ve also reached out to Samsung US for a comment on the matter.
Original article: January 22, 2026 (2:07 AM ET): Samsung has reportedly admitted liability in a case involving a Galaxy S25 Plus that exploded while charging. The incident involved a two-month-old Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus that suffered a “thermal runaway event” in November 2025 at a home in Indiana, USA.