Panel vacancy puts us at risk (CPSC - Chinese ATVs for Kids)

Source: San Francisco Chronicle

In February, I warned that President Bush's failure to fill a vacancy on the three-person Consumer Product Safety Commission created a potentially dangerous situation for the public. Without a full slate, the commission is unable to levy fines or force a recall.

And now, with the vacancy still unfilled and no nominee in sight, the worst-case scenario has arisen.

The commission says that a Texas company called Kazuma Pacific is importing from China a defective all-terrain vehicle for kids and that the company has refused to cooperate in voluntarily pulling the product from the market.

Without a quorum, or all three commissioners, the Consumer Product Safety Commission is virtually powerless to take action in the case.

"We have a recalcitrant company that is failing to meet its obligations to safety," acknowledged Scott Wolfson, a spokesman for the commission.



Read more: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/18/BUGOSR22R21.DTL&tsp=1

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Of course we know Bush only wants to put industry shills in this important position.

Hopefully, when a company discovers or is warned that one of its products is dangerous and potentially deadly to its users, it will take the steps necessary to protect its customers. We would hope that a company would be especially careful regarding a product it markets and sells to children. Unfortunately, a company called Kazuma Pacific Inc. doesn' t appear to be concerned that its Youth ATV might cause serious injury or death to kids.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has issued a warning for owners of the Kazuma Meerkat 50 Youth All-Terrain Vehicle (ATV) that children are at risk of injury or death due to multiple safety defects with this off-road vehicle. The dangerous defects include a lack of front brakes, lack of a parking brake, missing neutral indicator light and that the ATV can be started in neutral. The ATV is particularly dangerous because it is marketed to children ages 6 to 11, who typically are inexperienced and just learning to ride ATV's. The CPSC has recommended that riders stop using the Meerkat 50's immediately, and demand a refund from whomever sold it to them. Incredibly, Kazuma Pacific is ignoring the CPSC, and is continuing to market and sell Meercat 50's. Kazuma also refuses to keep data regarding reported injuries, so the CPSC cannot determine how many children have been injured or killed. Kazuma Pacific has sold at least 2,700 Meerkat 50 ATVs. This is the type of behavior that can cause kids to be needlessly hurt or killed, solely because an irresponsible company wants to increase its profits.

If you would like more information on this subject matter, please refer to our section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

http://charlottesville.injuryboard.com/defective-products/dangerous-youth-atvs-still-sold-despite-warning.php?googleid=9110

No child should ever be the driver of four-wheelers and such.

Recently a family friend's child was riding one on some hunting land, popped out from the woods in front of a vehicle, and was CREAMED.

The child is deaf, paralyzed, catheterized, brain damaged and nearly mute.

When I was a child myself, I was riding with some guys on four wheelers and go-carts around our neighborhood (rural Louisiana). The kid in front of me throttled up his three-wheeler too quickly, and in an instant he flipped over backwards breaking his neck. He was dead before the ambulance got there.

It is frankly much safer for a child to drive a car than an ATV. I continue to be amazed by how many children I see riding them.