Fitbit's Ion smartwatch suffered reports of overheating in 2018 and continued into 2020. However, according to U.S. officials, the company did not immediately report that the battery in the watch created an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death, as required by law. consumer.
On Thursday, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission ordered Fitbit to pay a $122.25 million civil penalty for delaying reporting that the watch's lithium-ion battery could overheat and pose a burn hazard. I announced that I agreed.
The commission said that in early 2020, Fitbit issued a firmware update to reduce the possibility of battery overheating after consumers continued to report painful burns due to the watch. However, Fitbit did not spontaneously recall the Ion smartwatch until March 2, 2022.
By then, the committee said Fitbit had received at least 174 reports of lithium-ion batteries overheating globally, resulting in 118 injuries, including two cases of third-degree burns and four cases of burns. said.
“Fitbit should have immediately reported numerous overheating incidents, including second- and third-degree burns,” Commissioner Rich Trumka Jr. said in a statement. “Instead, Fitbit broke the law by delaying reporting, putting consumers at risk of burn injuries. Many of these injuries could have been prevented.”
In a statement Friday, a Fitbit spokesperson said: “Customer safety remains our top priority and we are pleased to resolve this issue with the CPSC resulting from the Fitbit Ion 2022 voluntary recall.”
Approximately 1 million devices that track activity, heart rate, and sleep were sold in the U.S. from September 2017 to December 2021, with an additional 693,000 sold worldwide. Fitbit said the injury reports represent less than 0.01% of all Ion watches sold. According to the Consumer Commission, the company stopped producing Aeon in 2020.
As of the 2022 recall, owners were offered $299 and received discount codes for some Fitbit devices after returning their Ion watches, according to the Consumer Commission.
As part of the settlement agreement, Fitbit agreed to submit an annual report containing updates on the effectiveness of its improved compliance policies.
Google bought Fitbit for $2.1 billion in early 2021 after Fitbit agreed not to use health and wellness data to target ads to internet users.
In 2014, Fitbit recalled more than 1 million Force wristbands after customers complained of severe skin irritation.
However, after similar complaints, the company introduced flex wristbands later that year by adding warnings about nickel allergies and sizing guidelines to prevent users from wearing the wristband too tightly. Avoided a recall.
