Peloton recalls treadmills after child's death

Peloton has recalled about 125,000 treadmills in the US after the death of a six-year-old child.

A US watchdog said the Tread and Tread+ machines pose a risk of injury or death to adults, children and pets if they get pulled underneath.

In addition to the death, Peloton had 72 reports of injuries such as broken bones, cuts and grazes.

Peloton boss John Foley said the firm had "made a mistake" in not recalling the machines sooner.

In March the firm warned parents to keep children away from its Tread+ machine after the death of the six-year-old, who was pulled underneath the rear of the treadmill.

At the time Mr Foley called it a "tragic accident" - one of a "small handful" of incidents in which children have been hurt on the firm's exercise equipment.

"I want to be clear, Peloton made a mistake in our initial response to the Consumer Product Safety Commission's request that we recall the Tread+," Mr Foley said in a statement on Wednesday.

"We should have engaged more productively with them from the outset. For that, I apologise."

The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said that Peloton had voluntarily recalled the Tread+ and Peloton Tread, which posed a safety risk because the display console can fall off.

An agreement between the watchdog and Peloton means the firm must stop selling the machines in the US and give a full refund to people who want to return them.

Robert Adler, Acting Chairman of the CPSC, said: "The agreement between CPSC and Peloton is the result of weeks of intense negotiation and effort, culminating in a cooperative agreement that I believe serves the best interests of Peloton and of consumers.

"I would like to thank the CPSC technical staff who have worked tirelessly to protect consumers and to warn the public. Today we have taken steps to prevent further harm from these two products."