Notice that Free Replacement is Currently Underway
We are also offering free rear baskets (shopping baskets) in exchange for rear child seats that are no longer being used because children have grown. We hereby extend our deepest apologies to our customers and all people concerned, and ask for your understanding and cooperation.
Details are provided on the separate sheet.
Contact Information
<Customers>
Bridgestone Cycle Rear Child Seat
Free Replacement Customer Call Center
Freedial: 0120-22-0355
Opening Hours: 09:00 to 17:00
Monday to Friday (excluding weekends, national holidays and company holidays)
< Press>
Sales Planning Division: 048-772-5214. PIC: Mori / Sato
Document #1
September 12, 2011
Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd.
Recall of Bicycle Rear Child Seats (Free Replacement)
Status of Recall and Notification of Additional Recalls
1. Recall Status (recalled units as of September 09)
(1) Units replaced: 227,610 (recall rate of approximately 40%) (Total number of units affected by the recall: 569,523)
Reference: Number of units remaining in use as child seats (301,618) and total number of units, including those stored in sheds, etc., (451,431.)
(Results of a survey on [Bicycle Child Seats] implemented in June 2011 estimated in accordance with a remaining usage rates survey carried out by the Consumer Product Safety Association.)
(2) Transitions in Collection Rates
2. Overview of Accidents
(1) Overview of Accidents: The footrest on steel-made rear child seats break, causing children's feet to get caught up in the spokes of the wheel, resulting in injuries.
(2) Pace at which the accidents have occurred (as of September 09, 2011)
* "Serious Injury" is an injury requiring thirty or more days of in-patient or out-patient treatment (as defined by the Consumer Products Safety Law.)
3. Overview of Measures Taken to Recall Defective Products Up Until Now Attached:
Document #2
4. Notification to Related Government Authorities
(1) Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry:
Monthly Reports, issued every month from October 2010 Independent Reports, issued March 25, June 10, August 23, 2011
(2) Consumer Affairs Agency:
Independent Reports, issued March 25, June 23, August 25, 2011
5. Overview of Current Measures Taken to Recall Defective Products
(1) Advertisements in newspapers (5-column, color): September 13, 2011
Placed in the morning editions of the Asahi, Yomiuri, Mainichi, Nikkei, Sankei, Hokkaido, Tokyo, Chunichi,Nishinippon, Shizuoka, Niigata Nippo, Kyoto, Kobe, Chugoku Shimbun for a total of 14 newspapers (circulation of 35 million.)
(2) Posters and Flyers (revised editions) distributed between September 07 and 10, 2011. Posters and flyers already issued to sales outlets (approximately 12,000 outlets.)
Posters and flyers distributed to approximately 38,000 kindergartens and nursery schools throughout the country.
(3) In-store advertisements between September 28 and October 11, 2011
In-store advertisements posted in family restaurants that attract a large number of mothers and families. (In approximately one-hundred Gusto, Jonathon, Gracie, Bamyan, Yumean, etc., in Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures.)
Document #2
September 12, 2011
Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd.
Overview of Measures Taken to Recall Defective Products Up Until Now
1. Press Releases and Press Conferences
September 21, 2010: Press Release issued.
January 24, 2011: Press conference held and reference sheets distributed at the Consumer's Affairs Agency's National Press Club.
2. Newspapers Notified and Ads Placed
September 22, 2010: Newspapers notified of the additional recall and details of free replacement. Placed in the morning editions of the Asahi, Yomiuri, Mainichi, Nikkei, Sankei, Hokkaido, Tokyo, Chunichi, Nishinippon, Shizuoka, Niigata Nippo, Kyoto, Kobe, Chugoku Shimbun for a total of 14 newspapers (circulation of 35 million.)
(Articles were also placed in 38 other newspapers in addition to the above 14 for a total of 52.)
January 27, 2011: Details of free replacements placed in the morning editions of the Asahi, Yomiuri, Mainichi, Nikkei, Sankei, Hokkaido, Tokyo, Chunichi, Nishinippon, Shizuoka, Niigata Nippo, Kyoto, Kobe, Chugoku Shimbun for a total of 14 newspapers (circulation of 35 million.)
February 03 to 04, 2011: Advertisement placed in the Sankei Living Shimbun (circulation 5 million.)
April 12 to 26, 2011: Awareness activities implemented by distributing flyers that were delivered with newspapers in seven prefectures (Tokyo, Chiba, Kanagawa, Saitama, Osaka, Kyoto, Nagoya.) (Total number distributed: 10,806,600.)
3. Posters and Flyers
September 21, 2010: Posters and flyers notifying people of free replacement distributed to sales outlets.
September 21, 2010: Posters displayed in twenty-one kindergartens in Ageo City with the cooperation of the Ageo Kindergarten Association.
November 22, 2010: Posters displayed in forty-one nursery schools in Ageo City with the cooperation of the Ageo City Hall.
December 21, 2010, to January 23, 2011: Distributed and displayed in approximately 1,300 branches in the Bridgestone Group.
January 25 to 30, 2011: Revised posters and leaflets distributed to sales outlets (approximately 11,000 outlets.)
January 31, 2011: Posters and leaflets distributed to approximately 43,000 kindergartens and nursery schools throughout the country.
February 03: Posters and flyers sent to the Japan Chain Stores Association and nine companies that Bridgestone deals with.
February 14, 2011: Posters and flyers sent to the New Supermarket Association of Japan and one other company.
February 15, 2011: Received a request from the Musashino Bank, and sent posters to 91 branches for display.
February 18, 2011: Received a request from the Hokkaido Prefectural Police , and sent posters to be displayed in police stations.
February 18, 2011: Posters and flyers sent to a company that Bridgestone deals with (one company, 25 posters, 1,700 flyers) for display.
February 21, 2011: Posters and flyers sent to hospitals (2,315 hospitals) affiliated to the All Japan Hospital Association for display and distribution.
February 21, 2011: Posters and flyers sent to the reception desks of Tokyo ward halls and town halls (62 in total) for display and distribution.
February 17 to 28, 2011: Posters and flyers (approximately 300 posters and 1,000 flyers) sent to 26 companies affiliated to the Ageo Chamber of Commerce & Industry. Posters and flyers (approximately 650 posters and 4,250 flyers) sent to 12 Chamber of Commerce conference centers throughout the prefecture.
March 11, 2011: Distributed to wholesaler parking lots in the vicinity of the Bridgestone Yokohama Plant (in the Totsuka, Yokohama Region) (1,000.)
April 11 to 12, 2011: The new posters and flyers sent to sales outlets as part of our notification activities.
April 18 to May 09, 2011: The new posters and leaflets distributed to approximately 36,000 kindergartens and nursery schools throughout the country.
Implementation of Notification Activities: Excluding the five prefectures affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake (Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Fukushima and Ibaraki.)
4. Posting
From June 17, 2011: [Posting] distribution of flyers to normal households (Saitama.) 141,000 flyers.
From July 14, 2011: [Posting] distribution of flyers to normal households (Tokyo area.) 550,000 flyers.
5. Website
September 21, 2010: Details on the expansion of the recall and free replacement posted.
January 24, 2011: Links to Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd., from Bridgestone and Bridgestone Sports Website started.
6. Web Advertisements and Web Links
September 06 to 27, 2010: Ads posted on a website that attracts mothers (Women's Park.)
January 28, 2011: Links from Yahoo! and Google website keyword searches started.
February 07, 2011: Banners and links to our website posted on a website that attracts mothers (Women's Park.)
February 07, 2011: Banner posted on the Yahoo! website targeting young mothers raising children. Displayed four million times up until February 28.
February 14, 2011: Information on the recall posted on the Japan Consumer Cooperative Union website (approximately 54,000 page hits per month.)
February 11 to 17, 2011: Banner posted on the Yahoo! website targeting young mothers raising children.
April 25 to May 02, 2011: Banner posted on the Women's Park website as part of our notification activities.
7. Notification Cards
From February 14, 2011: Enlarged business cards printed with details on free replacement distributed to all employees for the purpose of handing out to business clients and acquaintances.
8. Magazine Advertisements and Articles
January 15, 2011: Advertisement placed in the Kokko Club magazine targeting families raising children. Circulation of 75,000.
February 10, 2011: Notification advertisement placed in the Anfan magazine targeting kindergartens. Circulation of 570,000.
End of February, 2011: Article explaining the Bridgestone recall placed in the All Japan Hospital Association in-house magazine.
May 12, 2011: Advertisement placed in the Anfan magazine targeting kindergartens, which was distributed within the metropolitan area, the Kansai area and the Tokai area as part of our notification activities (circulation of 570,000.)
May 20, 2011: Advertisement placed in the Yume-no-Hako magazine targeting kindergartens, which was distributed to nursery schools and kindergartens within the Tokyo area as part of our notification activities (circulation of 100,000.)
9. Direct Mail
December 21, 2010: Notifications e-mailed to all people registered on Bridgestone's online site, completed on February 03 (40,000 people.)
February 04, 2011: Notifications sent to all people registered for the Insurance and Anti-Theft Compensation plan.
Notifications sent to all people registered on the Damage Insurance plan for Angelino and other models (approximately 15,000 people,) completed between February 04 and 05.
Notifications sent to all people registered on the Anti-Theft Compensation plan for Angelino and other models (approximately 70,000 people,) completed between February 14 and 15.
April 21, 2011: Notification sent to all customers who purchased a bicycle (220,000 people.)
May 18, 2011: Flyers included in the Bridgestone Car Life Support Card invoices (sent to 72,000 people.)
May 23, 2011: Notifications sent to customers who purchased bicycles for the purpose of transporting children (30,000 people.)
10. In-Store Advertisements
July 26 to August 08, 2011: In-store advertisements posted in family restaurants that attract a large number of mothers and families. (In twenty-two Gusto, Jonathon, Gracie, Bamyan, Yumean, etc., in Chiba and Kanagawa prefectures.)
11. replacement centers established, and visits implemented.
From February 06, 2011: Continual replacement campaigns implemented at 127 sales outlets, with 923 units replaced and 2,630 units assembled (as of September 09.)
March 12 to 13, 2011: Kindergartens and nursery schools in Totsuka Ward advised that a temporary replacement Center had been set up in the Bridgestone Yokohama Plant with the use of flyers explaining the details of replacement and replacement implemented (25 units replaced.)
From March 28, 2011: Kindergartens and nursery schools in and around Ageo City advised that replacement would be carried out at the Bridgestone Ageo Plant with the use of and replacement implemented. This is still continuing today.
From June 22, 2011: Individual visits paid to kindergartens and nursery schools to advise them of the replacement campaign, which is still continuing today.
