THE USER OF THE LIFT COULD BE INJURED SHOULD THE LIFT MOVE WITHOUT THE RESTRAINT BELT PROPERLY BUCKLED.
Remedy & full details
BLUE BIRD IS WORKING WITH RICON AND RICON WILL BE HANDLING THE REMEDY FOR THIS CAMPAIGN. PLEASE SEE RICON'S DEFECT REPORT 09E-060. RICON WILL PROVIDE CUSTOMERS WITH A WARNING DECAL AND A DVD-BASED TRAINING AID. THE SAFETY RECALL BEGAN ON APRIL 27, 2010. OWNERS MAY CONTACT RICON AT 1-818-267-3000 OR BLUE BIRD AT 1-478-822-2242.
BLUE BIRD HAS NOTIFIED NHTSA ABOUT A DEFECT IN CERTAIN MODEL YEAR 2008 THROUGH 2011 ALL AMERICAN, CONVENTIONAL, AND MICRO BIRD SCHOOL BUSES MANUFACTURED FROM DECEMBER 13, 2007 THROUGH JANUARY 18, 2010 EQUIPPED WITH RICON MODEL S OR K SERIES PUBLIC USE WHEELCHAIR LIFTS. THE RESTRAINT BELT ON THESE LIFTS WAS DESIGNED TO PREVENT THE LIFT FROM MOVING, UNLESS THE TONGUE OF THE BELT IS FULLY ENGAGED AND LATCHED IN THE BUCKLE. RICON HAS DISCOVERED, HOWEVER, THAT IT IS POSSIBLE FOR THE OPERATOR TO INSERT THE BELT TONGUE INTO THE BUCKLE WITHOUT FULLY ENGAGING THE LATCHING MECHANISM. IN THIS CASE, THE RESTRAINT BELT WOULD APPEAR TO BE LATCHED, AND THE OPERATOR COULD RUN THE LIFT. IF THE RESTRAINT BELT TONGUE IS NOT FULLY ENGAGED INTO THE RESTRAINT BELT BUCKLE, AND LATCHED, THE LIFT MAY OPERATE WITH AN OCCUPANT ON THE PLATFORM.
Complaint volume
Volume alone is not a fault rate — popular vehicles attract more reports. Read it next to the severity mix below.
Complaints filed
2
Reporting a crash
0
Reporting a fire
0
Injuries reported
0
Deaths reported
0
Severity Index
0.00
Severity Index weights each complaint's reported outcome (death ×10, injury ×4, fire ×3, crash ×2) and divides by total complaints. It measures how severe reports are, not how often faults occur.
What owners report most
Visibility — 1 reports
Latches/Locks/Linkages — 1 reports
What to do
Find your 17-character VIN on the driver's door jamb or the base of the windscreen.
Check it against NHTSA's official lookup at nhtsa.gov/recalls — the authoritative record for your exact car.
Book the repair with any franchised dealer. Safety recall work is free, with no time limit and regardless of who owns the car now.
Does an open recall mean the car is unsafe to drive?
Not usually. NHTSA issues a "do not drive" or "park outside" advisory when a defect is dangerous enough to keep you out of the car — those are flagged Critical above. Everything else should be repaired promptly but is not an immediate stop-driving order.
Do I pay for recall repairs?
No. Federal law requires the manufacturer to fix a safety recall free of charge, including parts and labour, whether or not you are the original owner.
Why are there complaints but no recalls?
Complaints are unverified reports filed by owners. They can prompt an investigation, but many never become recalls — either the fault isn't safety-related or it isn't widespread.
From the same data desk
Independent sites, same maintainer, same open-data standards.