Mobile battery packs for recharging mobile phones, MP3 players and personal digital assistants have been recalled by their manufacturer because of a potential fire hazard.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said the devices, called a Mobile Battery Pack, are being voluntarily recalled by Tumi, of Montclair, N.J., which is best known for selling luggage, briefcases and women’s handbags, but also sells travel accessories.
The lithium-ion cells used in the Mobile Power Pack can ignite or explode while charging, posing a fire hazard, the CPSC said. There were two reports of consumers experiencing small fires during their initial charge of the devices, neither resulting in injuries.
The fire risk is greatest the first time the device is charged, so people who may have just purchased a power pack should not try to charge it, but people who’ve had theirs for a while should also stop using it.
Tumi said about 5,000 units of the Chinese-made packs were sold between from August 2007 through March 2008 for $135.Consumers are invited to call Tumi at (800) 530-0069 or e-mail the company at customercare@tumi.com to replace their power pack with a new one.
