SANTA CRUZ — A nationwide client security watchdog panel issued a public warning this week urging customers to instantly cease utilizing a Santa Cruz-produced electrical skateboard.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission “evaluated the Onewheel products and found that they can cause the rider to be ejected from the product, which can result in serious injury or death to the rider,” the regulatory company wrote in a information assertion distributed Wednesday.
“There have been at least four reported deaths between 2019 and 2021 and multiple reports of serious injuries after the product failed to balance the rider or suddenly stopped while in motion,” the fee’s assertion reads. “The reported deaths resulted from head trauma. Reported injuries include traumatic brain injury, concussion, paralysis, upper-body fractures, lower-body fractures, and ligament damage.”
In response, Onewheel producer Future Motion Inc. issued a response describing the fee’s warning as containing “unjustified and alarmist statements.” The firm sees no cause for customers to cease utilizing its Onewheel merchandise, based on its assertion.
“Onewheel electric skateboards are safe when operated following common-sense safe riding practices that are common to any board sport,” Future Motion wrote.
While empowered to subject necessary recollects and prohibit product gross sales, the Consumer Product Safety Commission had not made such an order for the Onewheel, so far.
The company, nonetheless, characterised talks with Future Motion as ending with an organization that “refused to agree to an acceptable recall of the product.” The fee, based on its information launch, intends to proceed pursuing a Onewheel recall for customers. Future Motion fired again in its personal assertion that, “rather than collaborate on how to further improve safety, the CPSC has unfortunately issued a sensational message about a product that brings joy and exhilaration to hundreds of thousands of Americans.”
Hundreds of customers posted supportive feedback and likes to Onewheel’s Facebook web page Wednesday after the corporate publicized a response to the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s warning. The social media put up started with the attraction, “Dear CPSC, Let us ride” and hooked up images of a six-page letter additional responding to the fee.
Riders conscious
Onewheel founder Kyle Doerksen advised the Sentinel on Thursday that Future Motion is collaborating with the fee’s technical employees, “exploring and evaluating a variety of ways to enhance Onewheel safety.” Overall, the product, he stated, is secure to function.
The firm additionally goes “to great lengths to encourage riders to educate themselves on safety and the overwhelming majority of riders use the board safely, ride within their abilities, respect the board’s safety systems, follow local laws, and wear a helmet and other safety gear,” based on Future Motion’s assertion.
“Onewheel riders are adults who know that there are inherent risks in riding an electric skateboard, just as there are in other board sports like snowboarding, or with riding an e-bike, electric scooter, ATV, or motorcycle,” the corporate wrote.
Onewheel merchandise have turn into the goal of a number of latest civil lawsuits, together with a class-action swimsuit filed in September, typically alleging damages attributable to customers whose boards reportedly halted and did a “nosedive” unexpectedly, throwing the riders and inflicting ensuing accidents. According to its web site, Future Motion already is addressing a distinct Onewheel product security subject highlighted by the identical Consumer Product Safety Commission. The firm has undertaken a voluntary recall of entrance footpads for the Onewheel GT after studies that the GT was persevering with to function, informally dubbed as “ghosting,” after the rider had dismounted.
The Onewheel, by way of numerous upgrades, has been bought since 2014, with present fashions priced from $1,050 to $2,200.
The fee is charged with defending the general public from unreasonable danger of harm or demise related to using hundreds of forms of client merchandise, based on its web site. Among latest related client product warnings just lately issued by the fee had been for My Bouncer Little Castle for strangulation and entrapment considerations and AIQRZBI and IGIA handheld hair dryer brushes, attributable to an electrocution hazard.