A large, global recall of about 375,000 <"https://www.yourlawyer.com/practice_areas/product_liability">Scorpio and Absorbica Shock Absorbing Lanyards has been implemented, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) just announced.
Some of the defective Scorpio and Absorbica Shock Absorbing Lanyards are missing a safety stitch on the attachment loop, which can cause the lanyard to disconnect from the climbing harness, posing a fall hazard to consumers. To date there have been no incidents or injuries reported in the United States and one fall injury reported in France.
The recalled Scorpio and Absorbica Shock Absorbing Lanyards were manufactured in France; imported by Petzl America Inc., of Clearfield, Utah; and sold at authorized Petzl dealers nationwide and in Canada from January 2002 through May 2011 for $75-$220. This recall affects all Scorpio and Absorbica lanyards manufactured before May 2011.
Scorpio
• Affected Scorpio lanyards manufactured between 2002 and 2005 are model numbers L60 and L60 CK, which are yellow and blue, Y-shaped lanyards with yellow stitching on both ends. The Scorpio lanyards are connected by a metal O-ring to one end of a blue pouch which contains the tear-webbing shock absorber. The pouch has a tag on it with the word “PETZL” in white letters. The other end of the blue pouch has a blue and yellow webbing attachment loop that connects to the climbing harness.
• Affected Scorpio lanyards manufactured between 2005 and 2011 are model numbers L60 2, L60 2CK, L60 H, and L60 WL. These are red, Y-shaped lanyards connected by a black metal O-ring to one end of a grey zippered pouch, which contains the tear-webbing shock absorber. The other end of the pouch has a black webbing attachment loop that connects to the climber’s harness.
Absorbica
• Absorbica comes in several models with varying lanyard configurations and several different connector options. Affected model numbers are L70150 I, L70150 IM, L70150 Y, L70150 YM, L57, L58, L58 MGO, L59, and L59 MGO. The lanyards have a black zippered pouch with yellow trim and the Petzl logo on the side. All have a common tear-webbing shock absorber accessible through the zippered pouch, which has a connector attachment on one end; the other end can have a connector attachment, a single lanyard or a Y-shaped lanyard. All lanyard options are constructed of black nylon webbing or rope and have either a connector attachment point or a snap hook connector sewn directly to the lanyard.
The CPSC is advising consumers to immediately stop using the lanyards and contact Petzl America Inc. for a free inspection and replacement of any non-conforming products. Petzl America Inc. can be reached, toll-free, at 1.877.740.3826 between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., Mountain Time (MT), Monday through Friday or at the firm’s website at www.petzl.com.
