To Prevent More Deaths, CPSC Will Create Rules for Recreational Off-Highway Vehicles

In October, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) voted to publish an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) to address safety hazards associated with recreational off-highway vehicles (ROVs).  Comments are due by December 28, 2009.

What, exactly, is an ROV?  The Recreational Off-Highway Vehicle Association (ROHVA), a not-for-profit organization sponsored by ROV makers, including Yamaha, Arctic Cat, Bombardier Recreational Products (BRP) and Polaris, describes ROVs in this way:

“Sometimes referred to as side-by-sides or UTVs, ROVs are motorized off-road vehicles designed to travel on four or more non-highway tires…

Fun, functional and definitely versatile, ROVs, or recreational off-highway vehicles, are a new breed of machine, attracting the attention of outdoor enthusiasts in ever-increasing numbers.”

Unfortunately, as ROV popularity climbs, so has the number of injuries and deaths associated with their use.  ROV incidents have resulted in 116 deaths and 152 reported injuries since 2003 according to the CPSC ROV draft report and Injury and Potential Injury Incident (IPII) and In-Depth Investigation. The CPSC expects these counts to increase as its investigations continue. In light of this, the CPSC met with the ROHVA in December 2008 to discuss voluntary industry standards that are being developed with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). So far, the CPSC has found these standards inadequate in addressing all of their safety concerns.

The ROHVA member-companies are well known for making other types of off-road recreational vehicles including ATVs, snowmobiles, motorcycles and utility vehicles. Yamaha has conducted eight recalls with the CPSC since 2001, with about 391,000 product units recalled or in need of repair. Arctic Cat has conducted 14 recalls since 2000 involving about 200,000 units. BRP has conducted 20 recalls since 2003 involving about 87,000 units. Polaris conducted 34 recalls since 2000 involving about 450,000 units recalled. (If you would like more information about these companies, WeMakeItSafer offers extensive analysis on company recall history and performance. For more information visit http://wemakeitsafer.com/CompanyReports.html or contact Reports@WeMakeItSafer.com )

Notably, the Yamaha Rhino has been involved in the death of 46 drivers and passengers, a fact that was reported in March when Yamaha recalled for repair and suspended further sales of three ROV models until repaired, according to the CPSC Rhino announcement. 145,000 vehicles were involved. A Bloomberg article reported that Yamaha is facing about 500 lawsuits over the Rhino in the U.S. and Canada.

Of the cumulative 76 recalls for the four companies, 58 (76%) had no reported injuries announced by the CPSC at the time of recall. Other than the March Yamaha Rhino recall, the CPSC reported 20 injuries or fewer with each of the 76 recalls.

One of the biggest ROV safety hazards relates to overturning. 69% of the accidents that the CPSC investigated “appeared to have involved overturning of the ROV, with no known collision event preceding the overturning,” according to the CPSC Report on Recreational Off-Highway Vehicles released in early October.

The report said tests of several ROV models indicated that vehicles may exhibit:

• Inadequate lateral stability
• Undesirable steering characteristics and
• Inadequate occupant protection during a rollover crash

ROVs are new products that became available in the late 1990s. Safety standards haven’t been established for ROVs, and ATV and other vehicle standards do not apply because ROVs have several unique characteristics:

• May have more than four tires
• Maximum speeds are often greater than 30 mph
• Steering wheel rather than a handle bar
• Side-by-side passenger seating
• Rollover protective structures
• Foot controls used for the throttle and braking

As noted above, the CPSC invites comments from the public regarding the risks of injury associated with ROVs and ways in which these risks could be addressed. You can submit comments through December 28, 2009 at 11:59 p.m. ET at http://www.regulations.gov by searching on keyword “cpsc rov.”