Just asking because I went into the Apple Store earlier to check about getting it fixed, and the 2 folks at the genius bar I spoke to didn't mention any risk of explosion after I explained to them the battery was expanding causing screen separation. It was only when I called customer support afterwards that the representative brought it up. Perhaps this isn't really a big risk, because if it was I would have assumed the genius bar would have mentioned it?
Not sure your examples are completely similar if there really is risk to bodily harm here -- vehicle recalls often happen well after warranty periods expire if there is a safety risk due to defect, and sounds like this might be a widespread issue... the phone is otherwise in perfect condition...