OneWheel Self-Balancing Skateboards Totally Recalled After 4 Deaths

The Consumer Product Safety Commission is amplifying a recall of Future Motion’s OneWheel electric skateboards, covering all models. According to the recall notice, the hazard with the board is they’ll “stop balancing the rider if the boards’ limits are exceeded, posing a crash hazard that can result in serious injury or death.”

The recall was just announced on Sept. 29, covering a total of 300,000 units. It comes after Future Motion received “dozens of reports” on incidents with the vehicles, with four riders dying from their injuries. Other reported injuries to include “traumatic brain injury, concussion, paralysis, upper-body fractures, lower-body fractures and ligament damage.”

The deaths came as a result of head trauma, with at least three of the accidents happening with the rider in a helmet. While the recall is happening, Future Motion and the CPSC are both urging owners to always wear protective equipment while riding.

If you own one of the affected boards, you’re asked to immediately stop using them. “Consumers with the Onewheel GT, Onewheel Pint X, Onewheel Pint, or Onewheel+ XR electric skateboards should download or update the Onewheel app, and use the app to update the firmware on their board to include Haptic Buzz alert functionality. Haptic Buzz is a tactile and audible warning system that provides the rider with a buzzing sensation and sound when nearing the limits of the board or when in low battery or error states,” the recall notes. The firmware will be released in one week from the date of the recall for the OneWheel GT, while the Pint X, Pint, and XR will see firmware launch within a week.

The news is more convoluted for those with the original OneWheel or the OneWheel+. These owners should head to OneWheel’s recall site and apply for a pro-rated refund for store credit when you confirm the board has been disposed of in the trash. All of the recalled boards were sold at OneWheel’s website and independent shops throughout the U.S., stretching from January 2014 through September 2023. These typically retailed for between $1,050 and $2,200.

“Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled Onewheel electric skateboards. Consumers with the Onewheel GT, Onewheel Pint X, Onewheel Pint, or Onewheel+ XR electric skateboards should download or update the Onewheel app, and use the app to update the firmware on their board to include Haptic Buzz alert functionality,” the recall says. “Haptic Buzz is a tactile and audible warning system that provides the rider with a buzzing sensation and sound when nearing the limits of the board or when in low battery or error states.”