Future Motion of Santa Cruz, Calif., is recalling 300,000 Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards.
The skateboards can stop balancing the rider if the boards’ limits are exceeded, posing a crash hazard.
The firm has received dozens of reports of incidents involving the electric skateboards, including four deaths between 2019 and 2021, and injuries such as traumatic brain injury, concussion, paralysis, upper-body fractures, lower-body fractures and ligament damage.
The reported deaths resulted from head trauma and, in at least three of those incidents, the rider was not wearing a helmet.
This recall involves all models of Future Motion Onewheel self-balancing electric skateboards, including Onewheel (original), Onewheel+, Onewheel+ XR, Onewheel Pint, Onewheel Pint X and Onewheel GT.
The model name is on the side of the skateboard. The Onewheel logo is printed on the rail of the skateboards.
The skateboards, manufactured in the U.S., were sold online at www.onewheel.com and other websites and at independent shops nationwide from January 2014, through September 2023, for between $1,050 and $2,200.
What to do
Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled Onewheel electric skateboards and download or update the Onewheel app, and use it to update the firmware on their board to include Haptic Buzz alert functionality.
Haptic Buzz is a tactile and audible warning system that provides the rider with a buzzing sensation and sound when nearing the limits of the board or when in low battery or error states.
The firmware update for the Onewheel GT will be available within one week, with the firmware update for the Pint X, Pint, and XR launching within six weeks.
Consumers with the Original Onewheel or Onewheel+ model should visit https://recall.onewheel.com to arrange for a pro-rated refund in the form of a store credit upon confirmation of disposal of the product.
Consumers may contact Future Motion at (800) 283-7943 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (PT) Monday through Friday, or online at https://recall.onewheel.com for more information.