Peloton Treadmills Are Deadly Dangerous

During the pandemic, Peloton machines became a popular way to get exercise without leaving your home. Although Peloton has been around for some time, they did not begin to sell treadmills until 2018. The at-home cycling classes were a contributing factor in Peloton’s rise in popularity. The spike was evident when the company reported its revenue at $1.8 billion which was an increase from their 2019 numbers of $915 million.

It has been found that Peloton Tread and Tread+ treadmills are designed differently than other treadmills. While most standard treadmills use a thin, continuous belt, peloton treadmills use individual rigid rubberized slates which interlock and ride on a rail. This sounds like a complex system for a treadmill. Another issue with Peloton treadmills is they leave a large gap between the belt and floor. This means that things can wiggle their way underneath and be trapped, leading to serious injuries and even deaths.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission has received 39 reports of incidents involving Peloton treadmills; 18 reports regarding the touchscreen loosening. They also received six reports of the touchscreen completely detaching and falling off of Peloton equipment. CPSC warned Peloton about the safety issues in April when a child reportedly died due to an incident with the machine. There were several other reported injuries caused by Peloton products.

In order to really drive their point home, CPSC released home video security footage of a child being pulled under a Tread+ machine. The child was seen struggling to free himself.

What did Peloton do?

Peloton’s initial response only made matters worse. In their initial response, they advised customers to continue to use their product but to ensure pets and children were not in the area when the treadmill was in use. They also advised customers to use a key to lock the equipment after each use to avoid any other incidents.

They essentially avoided taking any responsibility for their faulty equipment. They owe their customers honesty and safety. When a person buys a product they expect it to work flawlessly. If they are injured as a result, the consumer will look to the company to take responsibility for their actions in the incident.

Has Peloton recalled the dangerous treadmills?

Finally, yes – it did. In a late response, Peloton announced earlier this month that it was recalling both of its treadmills after several safety concerns were brought to light. This is a stark contrast to their initial response. The announcement only came after the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission became involved. The two parties went back and forth for several weeks before Peloton went back on their initial response. Their direct statement is as follows:

“I want to be clear, Peloton made a mistake in our initial response to the Consumer Product Safety Commission’s request that we recall the Tread+,” CEO John Foley said. “We should have engaged more productively with them from the outset. For that, I apologize.”

The company has advised consumers to stop using their equipment immediately and reach out to Peloton for a full refund. They also stated that they are working on a repair that will be coming in the next few weeks. It is estimated that the recall will affect 1,050 Tread products and 125,000 Tread+ machines in the United States.

Can I sue Peloton if I was injured while using a Tread or Tread+ treadmill?

Yes, you can file a product liability lawsuit against Peloton if you sustained an injury using one of its dangerous and defectively designed treadmills.

How does a product liability lawsuit work?

The first part of any defective product claim is determining who is at fault. The creation of any given product involves various parties before it can ever be brought to the general public. There can be several reasons for a defective product.

• You may be injured due to a design defect. This means that the design of the product was incorrectly done and made the product far too dangerous to use.
• The next possible cause is a product manufacturer defect. In this instance, the product was designed correctly but was manufactured incorrectly. There are several different things that can go wrong in the manufacturing process.
• The final possible cause of a defective product is a marketing defect. The product itself may not have a fault but the marketing for the product is incorrect. It may not have the proper warning labels or enough instructions for use. This can also happen if the product was sold based on the promise of it working one way when it actually works differently than advertised.

If you are injured due to a defective product you will need to seek legal advice from a trusted attorney.

Regardless of the reason behind a defective product, the consumer should not be held liable or left out in the cold. You have legal options if you have been injured by a product. The experienced Chattanooga product liability attorneys at Wagner & Wagner Attorneys at Law will fight for your right to compensation when you suffer the loss of a loved one due to a defective product. Call our office in Chattanooga at 423-756-7923, or complete a contact form to schedule an appointment. We proudly serve clients throughout the region, including in Cleveland, TN and throughout North Georgia.