40,370 Lithium Batteries Sold Online Recalled Due to Fire Hazard

The scooters and batteries were sold on the Sublue website, online platforms such as Amazon and Costco, and other sites between June 2018 and February 2025.

An image of the recalled Sublue Mix underwater scooter. Consumer Product Safety Commission

California-based Sublue Technology Inc. is pulling thousands of units of lithium-ion batteries from the market following reports of thermal incidents, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC).

The recall is applicable to about 40,370 units of lithium-ion batteries used in Sublue-branded underwater scooters, CPSC said in a March 13 recall notice.

Manufactured in China, the batteries “can overheat and ignite, posing a fire hazard to consumers.” Original batteries in the scooters as well as replacement batteries are covered in the recall.

If a lithium-ion battery is submerged in water and short-circuits, it can generate excessive heat leading to a reaction that can cause the battery to swell and potentially to explode. It’s not clear whether the batteries in Sublue scooters were impacted in such a way.

The scooters and batteries were sold on the Sublue website, online platforms such as Amazon and Costco, and other sites between June 2018 and February 2025. The scooters were sold for roughly $550 with replacement batteries costing $150.

“Sublue has received 161 reports of thermal and swelling incidents involving the lithium-ion batteries, including eight reports of fire, one report of injury, and two reports of property damage totaling $651,400,” the notice said.

The recall alert advised people to stop using scooters carrying the recalled batteries.

The company said it will provide a battery collection kit for customers to return the recalled battery and will provide a replacement battery upon return of the recalled item, according to the notice.

The notice warned against disposing of hazardous batteries directly in trash cans.

They must be disposed of “in accordance with any local and state ordinances, following the procedures established by municipal recycling centers for damaged, defective, or recalled lithium batteries.”

Multiple other recalls of lithium batteries have been made over recent months.

In February, more than a thousand units of sleep lamps were pulled from the market as their lithium-ion batteries posed a risk of overheating while charging, potentially triggering a fire.

In December, Chervon North America Inc. recalled lithium-ion batteries used in lawnmowers and other outside tools, citing fire and burn hazards.

More than 63,000 of those units were recalled across the United States after the company received more than 100 reports of thermal incidents, including overheating, melting, and fire.

Both of those items were manufactured in China.

Lithium battery fires are a key issue being tackled by authorities. In New York City, 277 fires were triggered last year by these batteries, resulting in six deaths, according to a Jan. 8 post by the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY).

The FDNY Lithium-ion Battery Task Force inspected 585 e-bike shops in 2024, issuing 426 summons.

New York state Sen. Steve Rhoads recently highlighted these dangers during an address on the Senate floor. He said that even small fires triggered by lithium-ion batteries are “very difficult to contain.”

“But when you’re talking about larger batteries, which are simply bundles of these small lithium-ion batteries bundled together in larger units, that’s all a larger battery is, the danger of those fires only becomes worse and more intense,” he said.

A large lithium battery fire occurred in mid-January at Vistra Energy’s Moss Landing facility in California.

The site, which housed 110,000 batteries, was destroyed by the fire, which spewed toxic fumes into the atmosphere. The fire burned about 80 percent of the facility’s battery installation.

In a March 15 post on social media platform X, Rhoads said that amid the push for electrification, lawmakers should “pump the brakes and ensure technology catches up before putting lives at risk.”

“Firefighter safety, passenger safety, and common sense must come first,” he said.