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ARTICLE · 19 FEBRUARY 2021

New Year Ushers In Uptick In CPSC Enforcement Activity

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After a civil penalty gap of more than two years, enforcement activity by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) appears to be on the upswing, with two settlements announced in early 2021.

United StatesConsumer Protection
Michelle Gillice
Michelle Gillice
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After a civil penalty gap of more than two years, enforcement activity by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) appears to be on the upswing, with two settlements announced in early 2021. Most recently, on February 11, CPSC announced that Cybex International, Inc. (Cybex) agreed to pay a $7.95 million civil penalty for alleged late reporting of potential product safety hazards with its exercise equipment.

The Cybex Settlement

According to the Cybex settlement agreement, the penalty arises out of two recalls of exercise equipment.

  • Arm Curl Machines: CPSC alleged that the recalled Arm Curl Machines are defective and create a substantial product hazard and unreasonable risk of serious injury or death because a weld failure can cause the handle to separate unexpectedly from the frame of the machine and strike a user in the face. Over a more than 12-year period (2002 to 2015), Cybex allegedly received 85 reports of broken handles, including

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