Last year, a $2 million program was initiated in NYC whereby delivery workers who owned non-UL-certified e-bikes could be traded in for brand new UL-certified e-bikes, as long as the batteries were traded in along with the vehicles. The reason was simple: since the rise in popularity of e-bikes and e-scooters, there had been a huge rise in e-bike and e-scooter fires in NYC.
Now there are two e-bikes in particular that you need to watch out for, as they've been due to fire and burn hazards.
FENGQS F7 Pro E-bikes with batteries manufactured on April 21, 2024, are being recalled. The reason for the recall is that the e-bikes’ lithium-ion battery can overheat and ignite, posing serious fire and burn hazards to consumers.
FENGQS has received 13 reports of e-bikes igniting, two resulting in fires with property damage totaling $4,000. Owners should stop using the recalled e-bikes immediately and contact FENGQS for a full refund. Only around 100 units are involved in this recall.
Consumers will be asked to write their name, the word “recalled,” and the current date next to the battery’s production date, with a permanent marker. Consumers must then submit a photo to recall@fengqs.work clearly showing this information and confirm disposal of the battery in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.
The other recall is much larger and affects all VIVI e-bikes that use 36-volt lithium-ion batteries. The recalled lithium-ion batteries can overheat, posing fire and burn hazards, and about 24,000 units are being recalled.
Consumers should immediately stop using e-bikes with the recalled lithium-ion batteries and contact VIVI to receive a free replacement battery and battery charger. Consumers must dispose of the recalled battery at a household hazardous waste (HHW) collection center or follow the instructions of their municipality and confirm that this was done by sending an email to vivirecall@163.com.
Both of the bikes in question were manufactured in China.
