The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with Hewlett-Packard Company, of Palo Alto, Calif., announced a voluntary recall of about 162,600 additional batteries (54,000 and 70,000 batteries were previously recalled in May 2010 and May 2009, respectively) Lithium-ion batteries used in HP and Compaq notebook computers.
Hazard: The recalled lithium-ion batteries can overheat and rupture, posing fire and burn hazards to consumers.
Incidents/Injuries: Since the May 2010 recall expansion, HP has received 40 additional reports of batteries that overheated and ruptured, resulting in seven burn injuries, one smoke inhalation injury, and 36 instances of property damage.
Description: The recalled lithium-ion rechargeable batteries are used with various model series of HP and Compaq notebook computers and include batteries that consumers were informed were not included in previous recalls. The chart below includes all notebook model numbers associated with batteries recalled to date. The computer model number is located at the top of the service label on the bottom of the notebook computer. Not all batteries matching the bar codes are being recalled.
Sold at: Computer and electronics stores nationwide, hp.com and hpshopping.com from July 2007 through July 2008 for between $500 and $3,000. The battery packs were also sold separately for between $100 and $160.
Manufactured in: China
Remedy: Consumers should immediately remove the batteries from their notebook computer and contact HP to determine if their battery is included in this recall. Consumers who had previously checked their batteries and were informed they were not included in previous announcements are urged to check again. Consumers with recalled batteries will receive a free replacement battery. After removing the recalled battery from their notebook computer, consumers may use the AC adapter to power the computer until a replacement battery arrives.
Consumer Contact: For additional information, visit the HP Battery Replacement Program website at www.hp.com/support/BatteryReplacement or call (888) 202-4320 between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. CT Monday through Friday.
