That's a week after Samsung announced its recall program and the same day the company started planning for an official recall in the country with the US Consumer Product Safety Commission. The CPSC finally launched an official, nationwide recall program for Note 7s on September 15th. "Unfortunately," Strobel's lawyer said, "for my client [it] came too late."

When Samsung first announced that it's taking back units it already shipped, there were only 35 reported cases of batteries overheating. That number climbed until it reached 92 cases, according to the CPSC. Since replacement Note 7s won't be available until September 21st, though, most buyers still haven't turned theirs in yet. A Samsung spokesperson refused to talk about the case with Reuters, but she urged "all Note 7 owners to power their device down and exchange it immediately." As for Strobel, he's now seeking damages for medical bills, lost wages, pain and suffering, along with other injuries.