Fitbit has reached a settlement with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) concerning a persistent defect that led to burn injuries among some users. Under this agreement, the Google-owned fitness brand will pay a civil penalty of $12.25 million related to the Ionic smartwatch.
The problem was first identified in 2018 and persisted until 2020. In March 2022, Fitbit agreed to recall the smartwatch after the CPSC stated it posed “an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death to consumers.”
According to the CPSC, an attempted firmware update in early 2020 did not fully resolve the overheating issue.
The organization stated, “Despite having information that reasonably indicated that the smartwatches had a defect potentially creating a significant product hazard or posing an unreasonable risk of severe injury, Fitbit did not report this to the Commission in a timely manner as mandated.”
In total, 115 consumers in the U.S. reported experiencing issues with the smartwatch’s overheating battery. Among these reports, 78 individuals experienced burns, with two cases being classified as third-degree and four as second-degree burns.
As part of the settlement, Fitbit must file an annual report with the commission, including an internal safety operations audit. The company is also mandated to “maintain internal controls and procedures to ensure compliance with the Consumer Product Safety Act (CPSA), including enhancements to its compliance program,” according to the terms of the agreement.
Compiled by Techarena.au.
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