Samsung Galaxy Note 7 recall expanded to 1.9m despite only 96 causing damage

Registered complaints leading up to US recall and replacement program found only 96 smartphones sparking or inflicting injury due to faulty battery

The recall and replacement program for Samsung's faulty Note 7 smartphone has officially begun in the US after an agreement was reached with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, increasing the number of devices that could be returned to 1.9m.

Yet the company has claimed that despite the vast scale of the recall - which Samsung estimates will eat into $2.33bn of its profits - only 96 handsets have been found to have caused damage or injury owing to the faulty battery problem.