Peloton CEO apologizes, cooperates in treadmill recall effort
A video released by the CPSC shows the problem: children can get sucked underneath the tread+ and suffer severe lacerations, abrasions, bone fractures, brain injuries and--in one case--a child was killed.
A reversal for Peloton, who agreed to recall its popular tread+ treadmill, after a child's death and dozens of other reported injuries involving the product.
Last month, when the Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a warning, the company defended its product and called the warning "misleading."
Peloton is now apologizing.
Since the CPSC warning two weeks ago--which included news of one child's death and 39 injuries--at least 30 more injuries have been reported to the agency.
"If you have young children or pets around, we strongly advise you to stop using this treadmill," said CPSC spokesperson Joe Martyak.
A video released by the CPSC shows the problem: children can get sucked underneath the tread+ and suffer severe lacerations, abrasions, bone fractures, brain injuries and--in one case--a child was killed.
"This particular treadmill has some unique design to it that is causing these incidents to happen like we haven't seen before," said Martyak, who added that the tread+ lacks a safety guard at the back/bottom of the machine, and has a large space underneath it where kids are getting stuck.
Peloton has sold 125,000 of the products, but users can now return them for a full refund between now and November of 2022.
"We have an agreement with Peloton to have this model pulled off the market and to stop selling it on the market," Martyak said.
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In a statement, Peloton CEO John Foley said, "Peloton made a mistake in our initial response to the Consumer Product Safety Commission's request that we recall the tread+. We should have engaged more productively with them from the outside. For that, I apologize."
Erin and Walter Mott of Hawthorn Woods are regular tread+ users with children ages 4, 6, and 8 months.
They say they have no plans to return the tread+ and will continue to use it daily with a new safety guard being issued by Peloton, along with a required pass-code built into its software.
"They are going to put a piece underneath so no objects can get under it, so we're just going to wait for that piece," said Erin Ott. "And there's going to be a code that they're going to give you so that the machine shuts off after 45 seconds."
Peloton will pick up your treadmill if you want a full refund.
The company is also now required to put out a warning at the beginning of each of their live virtual classes.
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