Checkered Flag does all it can with incredibly
safe brands and some of the best service teams in
Hampton Roads to keep those driving around
Tidewater
safe. That being said, there is some important safety information
that has just surfaced about children's (not infant) safety seats by
Graco.
Graco Recalls Car Seats Over Faulty Buckle
By CHRISTOPHER JENSEN FEB. 11, 2014
Graco
Children's Products is recalling almost 3.8 million car seats because
faulty buckles can make it hard to free the child in an emergency, the
company said on Tuesday.
But federal safety regulators said the
recall, the largest in five years, did not go far enough, and have asked
for an additional 1.8 million seats to be included because they use the
same buckles.
In an unusual move, the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration told Graco in a letter that unless those
additional seats were fixed it would take legal action to force a
recall.
The seats in the recall are the 2009 to 2013 model years
of the Cozy Cline, Comfort Sport, Classic Ride 50, My Ride 65, My Ride
with Safety Surround, My Ride 70, Size 4 Me 70, Smartseat, Nautilus,
Nautilus Elite and Argos 70.
The investigation into the seats
began in 2012 after some parents complained to regulators that they had
to cut the straps to remove their children.
One parent complained
to the safety agency that it took 45 minutes to free her toddler and
that worked only after the straps were loosened and the girl was
squeezed between them. "It is extremely unnerving to have this happen to
your child," she wrote. "What if we had a car fire or a car accident?"
The
Graco Comfort Sport car seat, one of the models recalled after some
parents complained that they had to cut the straps to remove their
children.
Graco told regulators that the problems with the
buckles stemmed from contamination with "foreign material such as food
or dried liquids." But investigators dismissed that explanation, saying
that buckles getting dirty with food and drink was "completely
foreseeable," and not an excuse.
In a statement Tuesday, Graco
maintained that the problem with the buckles "does not in any way affect
the performance of the car seat or the effectiveness of the buckle to
restrain the child. And a car seat is always the safest way to transport
your child."
While Graco said it was not aware of any injuries
resulting from the problem with the buckles, a letter from N.H.T.S.A. to
Graco on Jan. 14 noted that it was a defendant in a wrongful death suit
in Los Angeles County Superior Court over "the death of a 2-year-old
child, Leiana Ramirez, who was killed in a car fire following a motor
vehicle accident." The girl, the agency said, "was seated in a Graco
Nautilus car seat, of the subject seats."
A Graco spokeswoman,
Ashley Mowrey, wrote in an email, "The case was resolved pursuant to a
confidential settlement agreement." The recalled buckles were made by
AmSafe Commercial Products of Elkhart, Ind. AmSafe did not respond to a
request for comment.
The 1.8 million additional seats the safety
agency wants recalled are rear-facing models used for infants. They are
the Snugride, Snugride 30, Snugride 32, Infant Safe Seat-Step 1,
Snugride 35, Tuetonia 35 and Snugride Click Connect 40.
Graco has
insisted that those seats do not need to be recalled because if a
buckle jammed, the seat containing the infant could be detached from the
base, which is anchored to the vehicle, Ms. Mowrey said in a phone
interview. She said parents who had trouble with buckles could get free
replacements by calling Graco.
Clarence Ditlow, executive
director of the Center for Auto Safety, a consumer advocacy group in
Washington, said it was rare for a disagreement between a manufacturer
and the safety agency to erupt in public and involve the threat of legal
action.
The company displayed old and new harness buckles on its website.
"It shows a serious dispute," he said.
The
safety agency's most recent letter to Graco took an unusually harsh
tone. For example, the agency said that Graco's response to the agency
on Feb. 7 about its plan for the recall was "incomplete and misleading
to both the agency and consumers."
The agency also scolded Graco
over its characterization that it was recalling the seats "in an
abundance of caution" after not reaching an accord with regulators over
the danger that the seats posed.
"Please be clear," the agency
wrote, "there is no 'accord' to be reached between Graco and N.H.T.S.A.
on anything related to this recall." The safety agency went on to say
that by agreeing to a recall, Graco was admitting that the seats were
defective and posed an "unreasonable risk to safety."
Graco, a
leading manufacturer of products for young children, is a division of
Atlanta-based Newell Rubbermaid and sells at retailers including
Walmart, Toys "R" Us and Target.
Graco also makes baby monitors, strollers, swings and high chairs, among other items.
The
child-seat recall may expand well beyond Graco. Last month, the safety
agency began investigating similar complaints about child seats made by
the Evenflo Company of Piqua, Ohio.
The safety agency says it
believes some Evenflo models use similar buckles, also made by AmSafe.
An Evenflo spokeswoman had no immediate comment.
Source: [
nytimes.com]
The safety of our tiny passengers is the most important thing. Making sure that our
Hampton Roads youth are safely seated is of the utmost importance to
Checkered Flag. Look at your child's seat. Ensure it is not part of the recall.
We hope that all parties can do what is best for the safety of the children.
Checkeredflag.com will keep you up to date on all the latest safety information regarding
motor vehicles. Stay logged on for the latest.
