Recall Round-Up November 16, 2021

Recall Round-Up: November 16, 2021

This edition of Recall Round-Up features recalls from Hyundai, Hanna Andersson, Ellume Health, and an update on the Volvo airbag recall.

• Hyundai issues two recalls surrounding seat belt pretensioners as well as brake line fluid.

Hyundai, which has been the subject of multiple recalls during 2021, has issued two more. The first is an issue with the seat belt pretensioners in multiple models. Pretensioners are activated in the case of an accident and lock the seat belt in place, restricting an occupants movement during a collision. According to Hyundai, the front driver-side and passenger-side pretensioners are fitted with “pyrotechnic-type pretensioners” that can explode during an accident. The explosion has the potential to send metal fragments into the cabin and possibly injuring the occupants. The 978 affected vehicles range from the 2021 Elantra, Elantra HEV, Venue, and Genesis GV80, as well as the 2022 Genesis GV70. There has been one reported case of a passenger having their leg punctured by the fragments during an accident. Owners of these models can visit the NHTSA or Hyundai Safety Recall websites and use their VIN to see if their car is subject to the recall. Hyundai is expected to send notification letters on December 10th and owners will be able to take their vehicles to an authorized dealer for a free replacement.

The second recall covers certain 2021 Palisade vehicles which have been manufactured with a contaminant in the brake fluid. This contaminant can cause the inner cup seals for the brake master cylinder to expand, reducing pressure and braking at the wheels. Affected vehicles can experience a spongy-feeling braking pedal as well as longer braking distances, increasing the risk of an accident. While Hyundai is not aware of any accidents directly related to this issue, they have recalled 995 vehicles produced between March 9th and March 31st in the United States after identifying 11 cases of contamination in vehicles in South Korea. Owners of 2021 Palisades are encouraged to visit the NHTSA or Hyundai websites with the VIN to see if their vehicle is subject to the recall. Hyundai is expected to send out notification letters on December 22nd and owners will be able to take their vehicles in to an authorized dealer for a free repair.

• Hanna Andersson recalls two articles of baby clothing over choking hazard.

The first article of clothing is the Baby Ruffle Rompers sold exclusively on hannaandersson.com. The affected units are sized at zero months to three years and have a style number of 66919 which can be located on the main label. About 3,200 units sold of the romper are subject to this recall. The second article of clothing subject to the recall is the Baby Long Sleeve Wiggle Sets. The sets were sold with a style number of 66938 and also are sized from zero moths to three years. There are around 4,400 sets sold that are subject to this recall. The issue is with the snaps which go from the center of the belly area to the neck area on the romper, and are at the crotch area of the top for the wiggle sets. These snaps can detach and pose a choking hazard to young children. Hanna Andersson has received four total incidents regarding the snaps detaching, but no incidents of injuries. Customers are advised to immediately stop using the clothes and can contact Hanna Andersson via phone at (800) 222-0544, via e-mail at info@hannaandersson.com, or at their website’s recall section by clicking here. Customers will receive a full refund for the products as well as postage-paid labeling to ship the products back.

• Ellume Health recalls at-home COVID-19 tests due to false positive results.

Ellume Health, an Australian based digital diagnostic products manufacturer, has issued a recall over its at-home COVID-19 tests. The recall, which has been given the FDA’s highest classification, is due to a high rate of false positive results. The recall involves around 2.2 million test kits, 660,000 of which have already been used according to a company spokesperson. Ellume also says that negative results are not affected by the manufacturing defect. Ellume’s at-home test was the first to be given emergency use authorization last December. The company stated it has already addressed the issue and is sending correctly manufactured kits to the United States. The affected test kits have been removed from store shelves, and consumers that have already used an Ellume kit can visit www.ellumecovidtest.com/return to see if their kit is affected by the recall.

• Volvo expands recall surrounding faulty airbag inflators.

In our previous blog we covered a recall surrounding Volvo S60 and S80 models made from 2001 through 2009 over faulty airbag inflators. The inflators can degrade over time and can send metal fragments at the occupants when the airbags are deployed. Volvo, since our last update, has expanded the recall to cover both the V70 and XC70 models manufactured from February 22, 2000 to May 4, 2007. The total estimation of new vehicles being recalled is 195,000. While similar to the ongoing Takata recall, Volvo’s airbag inflators are manufactured by ZF in Germany and are not related to the Takata recall. Owners of the affected vehicles can visit the NHTSA website or call Volvo customer service at (800) 458-1552 for more information.