AzMotorNews.com
ATV Company To Pay Nearly
$1M For Self-Reporting Violations.
From the Associated
Press
in the 1-13-05 Arizona Republic
===================================
The Arizona Republic
ATV
Company To Pay Nearly $1 Million For Reporting Violations
From the Associated Press
In the 1-13-05 Az Republic
WASHINGTON - Polaris Industries Inc. has
agreed to pay nearly $1 million to settle allegations it belatedly reported
defects and hazards on some of its all-terrain vehicles, the first such
penalty involving ATVs, the government announced Thursday.
The defects were linked to dozens of accidents and at least 25 injuries from
December 1998 to February 2001, including burns, torn muscles, scrapes and
bruises, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said.
Two separate CPSC investigations found that Polaris, based in Medina, Minn.,
allegedly made engineering changes to certain ATV models after receiving
injury and accident reports, but before informing the government of any
problems, as federal law requires.
Polaris said in a
statement that it "vigorously disagrees" with the allegations and denied any
wrongdoing, but that it agreed to the $950,000 settlement to avoid
continuing legal costs.
In an interview, CPSC Chairman Hal Stratton said he hoped the penalty would
serve as a deterrent to other companies seeking to avoid reporting
substantial product hazards.
According to the commission, between December 1998 and May 2000, Polaris
received 88 reports of throttles sticking in the controls of three of its
ATV models - the Scrambler, Sport and Xplorer 400 - a defect that can
prevent the machines from slowing or stopping.
Seven injuries were reported, including a dislocated hip and a broken
shoulder. After three engineering changes, the company reported the problems
in May 2000, prompting a recall that August, CPSC said.
The second case involved Xpedition, Trail Boss and Magnum 325 models, which
had oil lines that blew off, disconnected or loosened, resulting in spraying
of hot, pressurized oil, CPSC said. Between March 1999 and February 2001,
the company received nearly 1,450 reports of such accidents, including 42
fires and 18 injuries. As before, Polaris allegedly made engineering changes
before reporting problems to the CPSC, and eventually announced a recall.
The CPSC has been criticized for dragging its feet on monitoring the ATV
industry. While sales of the vehicles - designed to travel over dirt, rocks
and trails - are in the hundreds of thousands and increasing annually,
consumer and health advocates doubt their safety for children under 16 and
have urged the government to regulate sales to younger riders.
The commission has reported more than 5,000 ATV-related deaths since 1982,
with children under 16 accounting for about a third. Stratton said new 2003
data would be released this month.
"We are facing an epidemic in the country and we need the CPSC to show
strong and effective leadership, and that has not happened yet," said Rachel
Weintraub, assistant general counsel for Consumer Federation of America.
The federation and several other consumer and physician groups filed a
petition in 2002 asking the CPSC to make it illegal to sell adult-sized ATVs
intended for children. Stratton said he hopes to respond to the petition
soon, but could not give a timeframe.
Without revealing how the commission might rule, Stratton said: "We can pass
a regulation that said that. Now, whether we can enforce a regulation like
that is a whole different kettle of fish."
In the interview Wednesday, he addressed the broader issue of safety
measures riders can take to avoid accidents, including wearing a helmet,
riding solo on one-seater vehicles and staying off pavement.
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