The Dutch manufacturer Babboe, positioned in cargo bikes for more than 15 years, was forced in mid-February to suspend its sales and organize a massive recall of its models, the fault of a serious safety problem. Lawyers are now investigating whether clients will be able to receive compensation. This could cost the company a lot of money.
The news had the effect of a small bomb in the cycling world. In mid-February, Babboe was caught by the Dutch Food and Consumer Safety Authority (NVWA), which ordered it to stop its sales immediately. A massive recall was also quickly formulated and organized.
The reason: a risk that the frames of its two-wheelers and three-wheelers will break. Several reports have been reported in recent months, without the Dutch manufacturer deigning to launch an internal investigation to determine the causes of these serious malfunctions. In short, everything was handled in the worst possible way.
Customers soon to be compensated?
This matter could go further than a recall and a suspension of sales. In addition to having a largely damaged brand image, Babboe could lose large sums of money. For what ? Because lawyers are taking action to find out to what extent the brand’s customers will be able to receive compensation.
As we learn from the Batavian media Bright, a reporting platform has been set up by the firm Birkway, based in Amsterdam. The idea is to establish an inventory of complaints and study reimbursement possibilities, writes the newspaper.
A parent company facing difficulties
“We will decide what action to take based on the number of reports we receive and the consequences for families“, declared a spokesperson for the firm. If the investigation forces Babboe to compensate these customers – although the matter could go to court – the sums of money at stake could be large depending on the volume of complaints.
Especially since the situation of the parent company, Accell Group, is not in good shape. Relocation, job cuts and social controversies are currently shaking this bicycle giant in the Netherlands. To what extent will Accell be able to preserve its subsidiary in the event of a financial collapse? The question is legitimate.
As a reminder, here is the list of bikes affected:
- Babboe City/City-E/City Mountain
- Babboe Curve/E-Curve/Mountain Curve
- Babboe Big/Big-E
- Babboe Dog/Dog-E
- Babboe Max-E
- Babboe Mini-E/Mini Mountain
- Babboe Pro Trike/Trike-E/Trike XL
- Babboe Carve-E/Carve Mountain