CPSC, IBM Announce Recall of AC Adapters for Notebook Computers

Recall Insight

This CPSC action (record #04208) was formally reported on September 2, 2004. It is classified under Moderate severity, with a current status of Active. Delta Electronics Inc., of Taipei, Taiwan is listed as the recalling firm. Federal records indicate About 225,000 units are affected, a scale large enough to require multi-state distribution tracking.

The documented reason for this recall is: The adapters can overheat, cause damage to the circuit board and melt through the housing, which poses a fire and electrical shock hazard to consumers. Distribution information was not included in the agency filing, so consumers should assume broad potential exposure until the firm publishes point-of-sale details. The remedy documented by the agency is: Consumers should unplug the recalled adapters from the wall outlet immediately and contact IBM for a free replacement unit. — consumers holding this product should act on that instruction rather than relying on general guidance.

To put this record in context, PlainRecalls indexes 83,949 recalls across the FDA, CPSC, NHTSA and USDA FSIS going back to 1995. Within the same product category, the database holds 6 closely related recalls, of which 6 were also issued by CPSC. That clustering is a signal — repeated actions in a narrow category often indicate a systemic quality-control issue, a supplier-wide contamination, or a design defect that has propagated across product lines. This recall is roughly 22 years old; older recalls can remain relevant because many units enter resale, rental, and secondary-market channels where the original warning never reaches the end user. Always cross-check the recall number against the official agency page before relying on any summary.