A voluntary recall of one of Best-Buy-house-brand Insignia's HDTVs has been issued, after an irreparable design flaw causing burns and fire was discovered. But customers are getting burned in more ways than one. Update:

[Note: Zing!]

The 26-inch sets, of which more than 13,000 units were sold, was priced between $900 and $1,000 at Best Buy, yet the US Consumer Product Safety Commission allows Best Buy to get away with exchanging a mere $500 gift card for the defective product. That means the customer is screwed out of either half or nearly half of the original price through no fault of their own, and they'll have to pay sales tax yet again if they want to replace the TV. Gift cards, unlike store credit, are still subject to said sales tax, which on a large purchase like this can be a significant chunk of change.

HDGuru recommends immediately replacing the set (model number IS-LCTV26), as it has already caused one injury and cannot be repaired. Give Best Buy a call at (800) 233-0462 to return it.

We also concur that calling the US CPSC at 800-638-2772 to give 'em a piece of your mind is warranted. At the very least, we invite all readers to load the Best Buy website and shake your fists angrily toward it. Update: I've neglected to add that $500 will be able to replace a TV of this size with today's prices. Most of Best Buy's 26" HDTVs can be bought for $500 today. [HDGuru, Image: bdjsb7/Flickr]