Sharp starts laptop battery recall

Sharp has joined the ranks of laptop manufacturers recalling troublesome batteries.

On Monday, Sharp became the latest company to announce plans to recall Sony manufactured, lithium-ion batteries, adding to the long and growing list of companies recalling batteries.

Sony also appears to be facing widespread claims for compensation from several laptop manufacturers, including Toshiba, Hitachi and Fujitsu, according to reports.

Sharp is recalling 28,000 battery packs. "We decided to recall the batteries to ensure safety for our customers," company spokesman Hiroshi Takenami told the AAP news service. The recall was made when the company discovered the batteries could short-circuit, which could lead to overheating.

Fujitsu has announced it is replacing 51,000 more Sony laptop batteries, following a similar recall of 287,000 laptop batteries earlier this month.

That company also said it might be seeking compensation for damages for the cost of recalling the batteries. All the companies involved with the battery recalls, which also include Lenovo, Apple and Dell, are expecting Sony to cover the direct costs associated with the recall. Now some suppliers may be seeking compensation for the indirect costs, such as the cost of damage to corporate reputations.

According to APP, Fujitsu is assessing the "extent of damage to determine whether to seek [other] compensation, while AP reports that Toshiba is considering seeking compensation "to cover damages to its product image and missed sales opportunities".

Hitachi is also reportedly seeking compensation from Sony after its own product recall earlier this month. AAP quoted a company spokesman saying that the company is waiting to finish the recall before deciding on any compensation moves.