ionigeria.com Nigerian Newspaper
American regulators have warned people to stop using popular Peloton treadmills IMMEDIATELY if they have kids or pets after one child died and dozens were injured.
The US Consumer Product Safety Commission says it has received multiple reports of children and animals being pulled underneath the Tread+ machine and becoming trapped.
One child has died, and others have been left with injuries including broken bones, cuts, and bruises.
The safety commission said one child became pinned under the treadmill while one of their parents was running on it, which suggests they are dangerous even under the supervision of an adult.
Peloton Interactive Inc said the warning was “inaccurate and misleading” and that the machines are safe providing children and animals are kept away from them at all times.
The regulator warns that if families in the US want to continue using their Tread+, they should keep it unplugged and in a locked room.
It also suggested keeping it separate from exercise balls and other objects as they have also been known to become trapped underneath.
Peloton announced a child had died after an accident with a Tread+ device in March.
It said in a further statement on Sunday: “There have been 23 incidents involving children, 15 involving objects, and one involving a pet.
“With the exception of the tragedy where the child died, we understand that in all other incidents where children were injured, they have fully recovered or are expected to do so.”
The company added: “The CPSC was given all of this data confidentially, and they chose to instead publish a statement that is misleading as to the number of incidents involving children.
“We have not given specific details about these incidents because we respect the privacy of our members, some of whom specifically asked us not to give details about their specific situations to the CPSC or otherwise.
“The importance of following Peloton’s safety warnings and instructions is abundantly clear in the video that the CPSC included in its unilateral press release.
“In particular, Peloton instructs members to remove the safety key when the Tread+ is not in use, precisely to avoid the kind of incident that this video depicts.
“When the safety key is detached as instructed, the Tread+ cannot be turned on.
“The Tread+ includes safety warnings and instructions in several places, including in the user manual, in a safety card left on top of the Tread+ tray on delivery, and on the product itself.”
Peloton is most famous for its exercise bike and live fitness class subscription service but it introduced the $4,000 treadmill about three years ago and now calls it the Tread+.
Sales have soared during the coronavirus pandemic, with the firm accumulating £1bn in revenue in the last three months of 2020 – more than double what it was during the same period the year before.
The company brought in $1 billion in revenue in the last three months of 2020, more than double its revenue from the same period a year before.
The commission did not say how many of the Peloton treadmills have been sold.
