The Peloton bikes and treadmills got crazy popular in 2020 with everyone staying at home. They’re high tech, with video classes on the monitor that include both cardio and strength work. Basically a nice package of features that goes beyond a classic cardio machine. All was going well. Then a couple alarming issues came up…
These are two separate recalls for totally different issues in the Tread model and Tread+ model.
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Recall Issued: May 5, 2021
First, the less alarming one.
This model came out in late 2020. Users quickly started finding that the touchscreen monitor can detach from the frame easily and fall, causing a hazard to the user who is running on it. I don’t know exactly how it’s detaching, whether from just touching the screen too hard or from grabbing another spot, but apparently it comes off a little too easily.
They will be offering a modification soon to better secure the monitor. They of course instruct everyone to stop using it for now. If you don’t want to miss workouts, at least inspect it first and make sure you see what the issue is.
Recall Issued: May 5, 2021
This model came out first, in 2018. It has a different style of monitor attachment before the TR02 issue with the badly secured monitor was introduced.
The issue here is a little alarming. Children, pets, and whatever else can get pulled underneath the back end of the treadmill belt. It has resulted in bad lacerations, broken bones, and even the death of one child. It took a few years of the product being on the market to cause this recall, which I suspect was triggered by the death.
Normally treadmills are made in a way where the back end is blocked enough to where it can’t pull anything under. You could still get hurt with any treadmill but not badly unless you’re trapped up against the back end of it and a wall. I don’t know whether this issue has partly to do with their improved belt design that is supposed to feel better than other treadmills.
Their remedy is offering pickup and refunds for all Tread+ treadmills. If you want to keep it, they will have a software update coming out soon that introduces a locking program to prevent small children and pets from triggering something, and in the meantime you should keep it in a room that small children and pets can’t get in. It sounds like it’s suggesting that if adults are aware of the issue then they’ll be okay on it themselves.
More info on both recalls is on Peloton’s site.