CPSC says Johnson Health Tech agreed to $16.875 million penalty over treadmill reporting delay
The CPSC says the settlement resolves allegations that Johnson Health Tech Trading did not immediately report a defect and injury risk involving Horizon T101-05 treadmills.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission says Johnson Health Tech Trading, Inc. agreed to pay a $16.875 million civil penalty to resolve allegations that it failed to immediately report a defect and injury risk involving Horizon T101-05 treadmills.
The agency said the settlement was provisionally accepted and is subject to public comment. It resolves charges that the Cottage Grove, Wisconsin-based company knowingly failed to report a defect that could create a substantial product hazard and an unreasonable risk of serious injury or death.
The CPSC said federal law requires manufacturers to promptly report product hazards. The commission said delays can leave consumers exposed while companies assess complaints and decide whether a recall is needed.
According to the commission’s release, Johnson Health Tech Trading received at least 874 reports between March 2018 and October 2022 that the treadmills unexpectedly accelerated, stopped or changed speed. The reports included at least 71 consumer injury reports.
The release said the company made production changes in February 2021 and September 2021 to reduce the fall hazard, but consumer incidents continued after those changes.
The CPSC and Johnson Health Tech Trading jointly announced a recall of the Horizon T101-05 treadmills on Oct. 27, 2022. The recall said the treadmills could unexpectedly accelerate, change speed or stop without user input, creating a fall hazard.
Beyond the civil penalty, the settlement requires Johnson Health Tech Trading and Johnson Health Tech North America, Inc. to maintain internal controls and procedures aimed at Consumer Product Safety Act compliance. The listed terms include appointing a product safety professional to oversee compliance and recommend timely section 15(b) reporting, reviewing incident and injury data for reporting purposes, and submitting annual reports on the compliance program for three years.
The CPSC identified Mark S. Raffman, a senior trial attorney in its Division of Enforcement and Litigation, as the commission attorney in the matter.
What happens next depends on the public comment process tied to the provisional acceptance of the settlement. The commission’s release did not say when that review will finish.
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Editorial note: This article was prepared with AI assistance and includes source attribution for reader review.
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