Peloton is recalling 2.2 million of its exercise bikes in the United States over concerns that the bike’s seat can break during use, posing fall and injury hazards, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced Thursday.
The bikes were sold in the United States from January 2018 through May 2023 for about $1,400. They were sold at Peloton and Dick’s Sporting Goods stores nationwide and the websites of Amazon, Peloton, and Dick’s.
The company has received 35 reports of the seat breaking and detaching from the bike during use, including 13 reports of injuries such as a fractured wrist, lacerations, and bruises due to falling from the bike.
The Peloton original Bike in the United Kingdom., Germany, and Australia, and the Peloton Bike+ are not impacted in the recall.
Consumers are advised to immediately stop using the recalled exercise bikes and to contact Peloton for a free repair. Peloton is offering a free seat post that can be self-installed.
Peloton can be reached at 866-679-9129 from 6 a.m. to 12 a.m. EST, seven days a week, or online at www.onepeloton.com. Consumers can click on “Product Recalls” at the bottom of the Peloton website page for information on how to request the free seat post and instructions for installation.
News of the latest voluntary recall sent the company’s stock plunging by more than 8 percent on Thursday.
Peloton bikes rose in popularity during the pandemic after gyms closed to curb the spread of COVID-19. A basic Peloton bike starts at $1,445, according to the company’s website.
This is not the first time Peloton has faced a widespread recall amid safety concerns. In May 2021, the company recalled about 125,000 of its treadmills, weeks after a six-year-old child died after being pulled under one of the machines.
At the time of that recall, the company received more than 70 complaints involving its treadmills, including 29 reports of injuries to kids. Two weeks after the treadmill recall, Peloton introduced a new lock function for those machines. The treadmills sold for more than $4,000.
The CPSC said the fine resolved the agency’s charges that Peloton knowingly failed to immediately report to the commission, as required by law, that its Tread+ treadmill contained a defect that could create a substantial product hazard and created an “unreasonable risk of serious injury to consumers.”
The New York-based company’s share price multiplied by more than five times in 2020 amid lockdowns that made its bikes and treadmills popular among customers who pay a monthly fee to participate in its interactive workouts. But sales began to slow in 2021 as the distribution of vaccines drew many people out of their homes and back into gyms.
Peloton has been in the process of a corporate reorganization. In October, the company announced it was cutting about 500 jobs. That announcement came after the company said in August that it would cut 784 jobs, close its North America distribution network, and shift delivery work to third-party providers.
