Unsafe models
This is the company’s second recall in a month and a half. In February, 10,000 copies were already recalled.
The cargo bike manufacturer Babboe is recalling around 22,000 cargo bikes due to safety risks. This concerns a third of all cargo bikes of the brand, the manufacturer says. The recall campaign will start in April in the Netherlands and Germany, with other countries to follow in the following months.
The decision had been up in the air for a while. Earlier this year, Babboe became controversial because several models turned out to be unsafe. The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) started an investigation in 2023 after the frames of several examples were broken. In February, the NVWA strongly recommended immediately stopping the sale of all cargo bikes and recalling unsafe models.
As a result of that investigation, 10,000 cargo bikes have already been recalled. Babboe then announced that it would conduct further research into the other models and let its customers know the conclusion around Easter. It now appears that another 22,000 bicycles are unsafe.
New copy
All customers who have purchased a new cargo bike in the past five years can count on a new one or an e-bike, the company said. For cargo bikes older than five years, the current value is taken into account.
Last Friday, the Federal Public Service Economy announced that a criminal investigation into Babboe in Flanders is not on the agenda. There have already been 23 reports from dissatisfied consumers about the cargo bike brand. The FPS Economy has set up random checks of Babboe cargo bikes throughout the country, but the service cannot yet release more information about this.
