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The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission and The Holmes Group (maker of Rival “slow cooker” crockpots) announced an extended recall of the firm’s applicances after the CPSC reported receiving dozens of reports of handles breaking and more than 30 consumer injuries.

The recall includes Rival® Crock-Pot® slow cookers with model numbers 3040, 3735, 5025, 5070 and 5445. The model number is printed on the UL label located on the bottom of the base. The recalled Rival® slow cooker has a removable ceramic bowl that sits inside of a metal base. The Rival® logo is printed on the front of the unit above the control knob. The bases are round or oval shaped and were sold in various colors and designs. A date code is stamped on the side of one prong of the power plug. The first two digits represent the week of manufacture and the last two digits represent the year of manufacture. Any plug with a date code from 0199 (1st week of 1999) to 3504 (35th week of 2004) is included in this recall or the previous recall.

Consumers should contact The Holmes Group at (800) 299-1284 anytime to receive a replacement base.

Posted under Recalls

The Consumer Product Safety Commission and Wal-Mart announced on January 13 that 600,000 crockpots, or “slow cookers” have been recalled because the handles could break and cause hot food to burn the person handling the appliance.

The involved products are GE Oval and Double Dish Slow Cookers that were imported by Hamilton Beach/Proctor-Silex and sold exclusively at Wal-Mart stores between August 2000 and December 2002 for approximately $25.

There have been 531 reported cases of handles breaking, and four consumers have been burned.

The affected model numbers are 106661 and 106851. Wal-Mart has created a toll-free number at (888) 293-3343 for consumers who own one of these products.

“Consumer safety recalls are not as effective as they can be because so many occur,” says Joan Bounacos, president of Consumer Help Web. The consumer advocacy company recommends that consumers sign up for one of the federal government’s recall mailing lists. “The Consumer Product Safety Commission issued more than 20 recalls in December alone,” Bounacos said. “Getting a little extra email is a good trade-off for making sure consumers stay safe.”

Posted under Recalls