Black Diamond has issued a voluntary recall for the following Black Diamond and PIEPS avalanche transceivers:
- PIEPS Micro BT Button
- PIEPS Micro BT Race
- PIEPS Micro BT Sensor
- PIEPS POWDER BT
- PIEPS PRO BT
- PIEPS DSP PRO
- PIEPS DSP SPORT
- PIEPS DSP PRO ICE
- BLACK DIAMOND RECON BT
- BLACK DIAMOND GUIDE BT
According to Black Diamond, the recalled transceivers may not switch from SEND mode into SEARCH mode, due to “a material handling / assembly anomaly in manufacturing that affected a small number of units.” This current issue is not related to the Pieps DSP recall in 2021.
If you have any of the affected transceivers, read the press release below and follow the recommended instructions. Black Diamond will replace or repair all affected transceivers that do not pass the safety check, free of charge.
BLACK DIAMOND – VOLUNTARY SAFETY RECALL
PIEPS and Black Diamond Avalanche Transceiver7/28/2022
In coordination with the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and Health Canada, Black Diamond Equipment, Ltd. is voluntarily recalling PIEPS Pro BT, Powder BT, DSP Sport, DSP Pro, DSP Pro Ice, Micro Button BT, Micro BT Sensor and Micro BT Race avalanche transceivers and the Black Diamond branded Recon BT and Guide BT avalanche transceivers. This voluntary recall follows a previous Safety Check Notice from April 2022.
The reason for the voluntary recall is related to a material handling / assembly anomaly in manufacturing that affected a small number of units. The recalled transceivers may not switch from SEND mode into SEARCH mode. If this were to occur, the device would not be able to locate another skier in an avalanche, which could result in severe bodily harm or death if a skier is buried under snow.
Affected models include:
• PIEPS Micro BT Button
• PIEPS Micro BT Race
• PIEPS Micro BT Sensor
• PIEPS POWDER BT
• PIEPS PRO BT
• PIEPS DSP PRO
• PIEPS DSP SPORT
• PIEPS DSP PRO ICE
• BLACK DIAMOND RECON BT
• BLACK DIAMOND GUIDE BTWhat will Black Diamond do?
Black Diamond will replace or repair all affected transceivers that do not pass the safety check free of charge.
What we need you to do?
1. Please stop using the recalled transceivers and perform a safety check to verify if the device can switch into Search Mode by following instructions and video tutorials on our website.
2. Immediately stop using transceivers not working properly and register the affected transceivers on our website to receive a prepaid shipping label to return the recalled transceivers for a free repair or a replacement. You may also contact Black Diamond at 2022beaconrecall@bdel.com or call us 866-306-0865 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. MT Monday – Friday and we can take your information.
We recommend you follow best practices and always check both SEND and SEARCH functions on your safety device prior to each use.
We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.
Sincerely,
Black Diamond
“ We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused.”
Dying is so inconvenient. I really hope this company never makes snow safety equipment again. Frig ‘em.
There are recalls all the time, across EVERY industry, for all sorts of reasons. It just happens, be it through a design flaw, improper materials being used (which could be the fault of the manufacturer itself OR a vendor that sent them out of spec components), or an anomaly that crops through normal use. People don’t bat an eye when there is a recall on the car they drive EVERY DAY, mountain bikes that they huck off jumps and send down mountains, snowmobiles they ride in avalanche terrain, the airplanes they fly across continents and oceans on, the food they eat, and so on and so forth.
Let’s just all take a deep freaking breath, go test your beacon, and take it from there. Bear in mind that BD has made a lot of awesome products over the years and that WE ALL MAKE MISTAKES.
This mistake was taking what, two years? since the issue was widely publicized and even acknowledged by BD by offering their total hack of a fix for these devices. A financial analyst and a lawyer finally realized that the lawsuits were going to cost more than the recall. Can’t really blame them for capitalism but I will certainly never support them.
Sometime recalls take longer. Look at the Takata airbag recall. It affected millions of cars made that were produced for several years (over 10 years if memory serves).
This is independent from the PIEPS issue over the last couple years. That was a design flaw, this seems to be just a bad batch of units. Still though, I have a Recon bt that has always worked great and this may be too much to worry about. Probably a good time to upgrade to the Barryvox s
BCA had a beacon recall for a very similar problem – the mode switch getting stuck over time so it couldn’t be put into search. BD is not alone on this one nor are they blameless.
But the BCA issue should really have put everyone on notice that you HAVE TO check that every beacon works in both modes, every day.
Moved on to ortovox, but swung in to the comments to berate this company for their complete lack of follow through. $800 isn’t a ton of money to some, but it’s a lot to me. After beginning the recall process with Pieps, for two beacons, and a long drawn out communication thread, they completely stopped responding. No fix, no replacement, no explanation, no apology.