GE Refrigerator Recalled: What to Know

Forget checking your refrigerator for recalled products, because a recall has just hit that impacts the refrigerator itself. GE Appliances on Thursday, April 14 recalled several refrigerator models after they were found to pose a fall risk, with the company receiving dozens of reports of injuries.

The Louisville, Kentucky-based company recalled approximately 155,000 GE-brand refrigerators after it received 71 reports of the freezer drawer handle detaching. The detached handles resulted in 37 reported injuries, including three serious fall injuries. According to a recall notice posted by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, “the freezer handle can detach when a consumer tries to open the freezer drawer, posing a fall hazard to the consumer.” GE said in a statement that it issued the voluntary recall “as part of our commitment to product safety and loyalty to our consumers.”

The recall includes six models of free-standing French door refrigerators that were manufactured in Mexico from February 2020 through August 2021. The refrigerators were sold nationwide
at U.S. home improvement and appliance stores including Best Buy, Home Depot and Lowe’s for between $1,900 and $2,500 from February 2020 through January 2022. The GE-brand refrigerators with bottom freezers in fingerprint-resistant stainless steel included in the recall include GFE26JYMKFFS, GFE26JYMNFFS, GNE27EYMKFFS, GNE27EYMNFFS, GNE27JYMKFFS, and GNE27JYMNFFS. The serial numbers for the affected models begin with one of the following two letter combinations: DR, FR, GR, HR, LR, MR, RR, SR, TR, VR, ZR, AS, DS, FS, GS, HS, LS, MS.  The brand name, model, and serial number for each unit are printed on a label located on the top of the left side of the interior of the refrigerator compartment.

Consumers who believe they have the recalled GE refrigerators in their homes are asked to GE Appliances “to determine if their unit is part of the recall.” Once determined that the refrigerator is impacted by a recall, consumers can “schedule a free in-home service call to have the freezer’s handle mounting fasteners replaced and the handle re-installed and for instructions for safe use pending a repair.” GE is contacting all known purchasers directly and said consumers can continue to use their refrigerators amid the recall. The company advised that if consumers notice a loose handle on their refrigerator, they can “open the freezer by gripping the edge of the freezer door where the flexible rubber sealing gasket meets the metal freezer door.”