Ryobi recalls cordless drills due to fire hazard

RP news wires
Tags: power tools, workplace safety

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed. It is illegal to resell or attempt to resell a recalled consumer product.

Name of Product: Ryobi Model HP 1802M Cordless Power Drills

Units: About 455,000

Importer: Ryobi Technologies Inc., of Anderson, S.C.

Hazard: The switch on the cordless drill can overheat, posing a fire and burn hazard to consumers.

Incidents/Injuries: Ryobi has received 47 reports of the drills overheating, smoking, melting or catching fire, including 12 reports of property damage to homes or vehicles. Two of the incidents involved minor burns from touching an overheated switch.

Description: The Ryobi Model HP 1802M cordless drill is powered by an 18 volt rechargeable NiCad battery. The drills are blue and black in color with "Ryobi" appearing in red and white on the left side. The model number can be found on a white label on the right side of the drill.

Sold at: Home Depot from January 2001 to July 2003 for about $100.

Manufactured in: China

Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled drill, remove the rechargeable battery and contact Ryobi to receive a free replacement drill.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Ryobi Customer Service at 800-597-9624 between 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. ET Monday through Friday or visit the firm's Web site at www.ryobitools.com

CPSC is still interested in receiving incident or injury reports that are either directly related to this product recall or involve a different hazard with the same product. Please tell us about it by visiting https://www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/incident.aspx

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of serious injury or death from thousands of types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. The CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical, or mechanical hazard. The CPSC's work to ensure the safety of consumer products - such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters, and household chemicals - contributed significantly to the decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 30 years.

To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, call CPSC's Hotline at 800-638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at 301-595-7054. To join a CPSC e-mail subscription list, go to https://www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx. Consumers can obtain recall and general safety information by logging on to CPSC's Web site at www.cpsc.gov.