A legal dispute over allegations of defective work that led to trailers catching fire is now threatening to draw in the manufacturers of components that may be at the root of the incidents.

The case of Indiana-based Summitt Leasing and Summitt Trucking vs. Fruehauf was first filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Kentucky at the end of last year, with an amended complaint filed soon after. Summitt is a carrier as well as a supplier of leased trailers.

A Long Cast of Characters

Last week, Fruehauf, a trailer manufacturer, moved to bring in as defendants SAF-Holland Inc., Bendix Commercial Vehicle Systems LLC and Hoosier Trailer Acquisition Corp. Two of those companies, SAF-Holland and Bendix, manufactured components in the trailers that Summitt says failed in several different ways, which may have led to the fires. Both are major suppliers in the commercial vehicle sector: SAF-Holland is a global maker of suspension, axle and coupling systems, while Bendix, a subsidiary of Germany's Knorr-Bremse, is one of the largest suppliers of braking and air-management technology for heavy trucks and trailers in North America.

Hoosier is a trailer dealer that supplied the Fruehauf-manufactured trailers to Pace Transportation Services, which then moved the trailers on to Summitt. Pace was already a defendant in the original case alongside Fruehauf. Lexington Insurance Company, which counts Fruehauf as a client, is an intervening plaintiff in the case alongside Summitt.

In its motion to file a "third-party complaint," Fruehauf said it "did not manufacture either of the component parts that are the subject of this dispute. Fruehauf did nothing more than install these component parts onto the trailers. Any liability for an alleged defective component part belongs to the manufacturer or seller of the individual component parts—not Fruehauf." Such third-party practice, allowed under federal civil procedure rules, lets a defendant pull another party into a case when it believes that party may owe it payment for all or part of the plaintiff's claim—here, effectively shifting potential liability upstream to component makers.

Fruehauf's request to widen the group of defendants states that it contracted "directly" with Hoosier for the latter to buy the trailers "and communicated any component part changes to Hoosier." Hoosier then sold the trailers to Pace, which is described in the initial Summitt lawsuit as operating a trailer sales and service business. Summitt is a customer of Pace.

If the court grants the request to expand the list of defendants, the case will involve several companies that manufacture key parts of a trailer. It also suggests that any efforts toward an out-of-court settlement are off the table, at least for now. The dispute also highlights a structural feature of trailer manufacturing: builders like Fruehauf typically assemble vehicles from components—suspensions, brake valves, tire inflation systems—sourced from specialized suppliers, which can complicate questions of who bears responsibility when an integrated product fails.

Going Back Four Years

According to the Summitt filing, the developments that led to the lawsuit began in September 2022, when Summitt agreed to buy 100 trailers from Fruehauf. It wanted those trailers so much, according to a recap of the case's history, that it joined a waitlist "rather than (buying) similar models from other sellers."

"Summitt purchased the Trailers in reliance on Fruehauf's advertising, expecting them to deliver lower operating costs per mile and improved fuel efficiency," the lawsuit said. "Summitt was also familiar with these trailers as they have purchased and used them in the past."

Fruehauf's role was three-fold, according to the lawsuit: it "engineered, designed and assembled" the trailers, including the air and braking systems. The lawsuit lists several component suppliers Fruehauf used to build the trailers, though not all are defendants.

Specifically, Summitt's lawsuit says the trailers were to be equipped with a Hendrickson 40K suspension and a Tiremaax Pro Tire Inflation System. Instead, they received trailers with substitute components manufactured by SAF Holland and Bendix. Additionally, Summitt had expected a Wabco ABS System (NYSE: WAB) to be used.

"Unlike typically manufactured and purchased trailers, these trailers quickly began to exhibit significant issues: the brakes engaged without being prompted; the efficiency per mile plummeted; and the wheel ends of the Trailer would reach dangerous temperatures," the lawsuit said. "Also, the maintenance costs for brakes and tires were extreme."

A trailer hauling a load for a customer caught fire in September 2023, according to the Summitt lawsuit. That was followed, Summitt adds, by "chronic issues involving self-engagement of the Trailer's brake system while in transit."

Plenty of Blame Flying Around

Discussions between Summitt and Fruehauf resulted in little action, with the lawsuit saying Fruehauf "blamed other parties, including SAF Holland, Bendix and even Summitt." Inspections carried out by several companies in the supply chain did find components in various states of deterioration, the lawsuit says, but what is at issue is their installation, which may have led to that deterioration.

Summitt's lawsuit does not charge the component manufacturers with supplying Fruehauf with faulty products, and they were not initial defendants. It is Fruehauf that is now seeking to bring them into the case.

The Summitt lawsuit cites a report from outside consulting firm Wolf Technical Services, which told the carrier that "based upon the available evidence, that Fruehauf integrated the Bendix R-12P Pilot Relay Valve into the Trailer's pneumatic brake circuit in a manner inconsistent with the recommendations of the manufacturer, Bendix."

Summitt says it was not having problems with any of its other trailers, even though Bendix and Fruehauf blamed the company. By late 2024, according to the lawsuit, "Fruehauf, while limiting its acknowledgment and avoiding full accountability, finally conceded that the trailers it sold to Summitt were defective." (An email sent to Fruehauf attorneys listed in court documents had not been responded to by publication time.)

Summitt then followed Fruehauf's instructions and, using parts supplied by Fruehauf, began making repairs. Summitt said Fruehauf did not pay it for the work. The fires did not stop—there were reportedly more than 20 of them—with the lawsuit citing two additional blazes that occurred after the repair work had begun.

Repair work is continuing. But, the lawsuit said, "without a permanent solution, Summitt continues to incur losses and face liability for the defective Trailers."

"The trailers remain inadequately repaired and unsafe for their intended use," the lawsuit said. "The safety of these Trailers impacts not only the cargo, but the safety of the driver, and other individuals travelling on the roadway."

The original Fruehauf entered bankruptcy in the 1990s and its U.S. assets were sold to Wabash National (NYSE: WNC). An international company remained and moved back into U.S. manufacturing in Bowling Green, Kentucky, in 2022.