Consumer’s ‘Choice Alone’ Whether to Opt for Note7 Replacement or Refund, Says CPSC
Samsung has received 92 U.S. reports of the batteries in its Galaxy Note7 smartphones overheating, including 26 reports of burns and 55 reports of property damage, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said Thursday in its much-anticipated recall notice (see 1609120044). The recall affects about a million Note7s sold in the U.S. since their early-August introduction, the notice said.
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The U.S. phones CPSC cited account for about 40 percent of the 2.5 million Note7s Samsung said it shipped globally since launch. The 92 reported U.S. incidents CPSC quoted was nearly three times higher than the 35 reports globally that Samsung’s parent said in its Sept. 2 announcement it was aware of.
“Because this product presents such a serious fire hazard, I urge all consumers to take advantage of the recall right away,” CPSC Chairman Elliot Kaye said in a hastily called Thursday news conference. “Consumers have been anxiously waiting for this announcement. We certainly understand that. Now is the time to act.”
Consumers’ two options in the recall notice are to seek a replacement Note7 phone or get a refund, Kaye said. “It’s the choice of the customer, and the customer’s choice alone,” which option to take, he said. “Last week, the public heard our message to power down your phone. This week’s message is take that phone and get a replacement or a refund.”
The agency wants the recall “to be as simple and as straightforward for customers of Samsung as possible, and we really do want them to take advantage of it right away,” Kaye said. “As we’ve seen in the videos and the footage, these phones can present a very serious fire hazard.”
In seeking an immediate remedy, the commission was “focused exclusively on what we could do as quickly as possible to provide the most comprehensive relief,” Kaye said in Q&A when asked about a possible Note7 battery exchange. “My understanding is it’s not the type of product where a consumer could flip out the battery themselves, that it’s ingrained into the product and it does require a new phone or again of course a refund,” he said of the Note7.
Kaye had harsh words for Samsung for its initial decision to go it alone on a Note7 product exchange offer without CPSC's involvement. “We are focused on trying to make sure that consumers get the central message that we want them to take advantage of the refund or the recall,” Kaye said in Q&A. “I will say as a general matter that it’s not a recipe for a successful recall for a company to go out on its own. In my mind, anyone who thinks that a company going out on its own is going to provide the best recalls for that company and more importantly for the consumer needs to have more than their phone checked.”
Samsung representatives didn’t immediately comment on Kaye’s remarks. The company said in a statement that replacement Note7 devices will be available no later than Wednesday for anyone who wants them. “Consumer safety is always our highest priority,” said Samsung Electronics America President Tim Baxter in the statement. “Our collaboration with the CPSC to fast-track a voluntary recall in the U.S. addresses safety concerns by ensuring we reach Note7 owners quickly to exchange their devices.”