The Commerce Commission has laid Fair Trading Act charges against retailers Torpedo7 Limited (trading as 1-Day) and Container Door Limited for allegedly supplying bicycles without some information about the bicycles that should have been provided to consumers.
The Commission alleges that the bicycles failed to comply with the mandatory product safety standard for pedal bicycles, which requires that certain bicycles must have front and rear brakes, and must be supplied along with specified safety information.
Torpedo7
Torpedo7 is a specialist retailer of sporting and outdoor goods and is a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Warehouse Group. It faces two representative charges.
The Commission alleges that between 4 October and 17 November 2017, Torpedo7 (via its 1-Day website) advertised and offered to supply 100 Hang-Ten Cruiser bicycles and subsequently supplied 53 bicycles that did not comply with the pedal bicycle product safety standard.
It is alleged that none of the bicycles had a front brake installed, as required by the standard. In addition, it is alleged that the bicycles did not comply with the standard because:
- they were not marked with the manufacturer, importer or supplier's details
- the owner's manual did not provide all required torque settings
- the manual did not include all required warnings, such as increased braking distance in wet conditions.
Torpedo7 will next appear at 9am on 20 June at the Hamilton District Court.
Container Door
Container Door is an online-only seller of various consumer products.
The Commission alleges that between 1 April and 23 November 2017, Container Door supplied 15 Huffy Cruiser bicycles that did not comply with the pedal bicycle product safety standard.
It is alleged that none of the bicycles had a front brake installed, as required by the standard. In addition, it is alleged that the bicycles did not comply with the standard because:
- they were not marked with the manufacturer, importer or supplier's details
- the packaging did not include a warning recommending that the bicycle be assembled by a skilled mechanic.
Container Door will next appear at 9am on 18 June at the Auckland District Court.
Both companies undertook recalls of the bicycles after being contacted by the Commission.
As these cases are before the Court, the Commission cannot comment further at this time.
