The U.S. government issued an urgent warning on Saturday, in which it told consumers to stop using the Platoon Tread + after “dozens of incidents of sucking children under the treadmill.”
The announcement came a month after the New York-based exercise equipment company, with an almost cultured customer base, acknowledged that a child died in a treadmill-related incident.
Peloton CEO John Foley called the incident “tragic” and said the company was “aware of a small handful of Tread +-related incidents where children have been injured.”
But the Consumer Product Safety Commission on Saturday said it is aware of 39 incidents, including death.
“CPSC staff believes the Tread + Platoon poses serious risks to children from abrasions, fractures and deaths,” the agency said in its warning. posted to Twitter and your website. “In light of multiple reports of children trapped, nailed and thrown under the back roller of the product, CPSC urges consumers with children at home to stop using the product immediately.”
The launch included a harrowing video showing two young children playing on a treadmill, with a tug under the machine as it tried to play with a ball that was trapped underneath.
A separate report of a pet sucked under the Tread +, along with inanimate objects being thrown underneath, “also suggests possible harm to the user if the user loses balance,” the CPSC said.
Consumers intending to continue using the machines should keep them in a locked room away from children and pets, disconnect them when not in use, and keep other objects away from them, according to CPSC.
In a statement, Peloton called CPSC’s guidelines a “misleading and inaccurate bulletin” and said the agency “unfairly characterizes Peloton’s efforts to collaborate and correct inaccuracies in the CPSC press release as an attempt to delay “.
“This could not be further from the truth,” the statement said, adding that it wanted to make a joint announcement with the CPSC “about the danger of not following the warnings and safety instructions provided with the Tread +” and the CEO asked to meet with the agency.
“Peloton is disappointed that, despite its collaborative offerings, and despite Tread + meeting all applicable security standards, CPSC was unwilling to engage in meaningful discussions with Peloton before issuing an inaccurate press release and misleading “.
Peloton remains open to working with CPSC, but maintains that “there is no reason to stop using Tread + as long as all safety warnings and instructions are followed.”