19 Action News|Cleveland, OH|Breaking News, Weather, ExclusivesEvenflo recalls car seats

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(WOIO) - Evenflo Company, Inc. initiated a voluntary safety recall of certain Maestro Combination Booster Seats to address a crack that occurred in certain laboratory tests simulating a high-impact, frontal collision.

There have been no reports of this crack occurring in the field and no injuries have been reported. In the U.S., the initiative involves 13,792 seats with model numbers that begin with "310" that were built between November 24, 2009 and April 9, 2010.

In Canada, the initiative involves seats with a model number that begins with "310" that were built between December 17, 2009 and April 26, 2010. Maestro child restraints built after April 2010 are not affected by this action.

Evenflo is proactively initiating this action to address an issue first observed at an independent test laboratory in late September.

Evenflo is sending a consumer notice to registered owners of the affected seats to apprise them of the action and all units will be removed from shelves. The company will make available an easily installed bracket to reinforce the seat. Owners are urged to visit the Evenflo.com consumer website for more information and are encouraged to pass along information to their friends and neighbors.

The seat should not be used with children weighing under 40 pounds without the repair bracket. Children who weigh more than 40 pounds can continue to use the seat as a belt-positioning booster until the remedy kit arrives.

In the U.S., affected Maestro model numbers are 3101198, 3101980, 31011048, 31011049, and 31011059. In Canada, the affected model number is 31011057C. The model number and date of manufacture can be found on a white label behind the seat above the highest shoulder belt slot. Other Maestro models are not affected.

The company requests that purchasers of affected Evenflo Maestro seats contact Evenflo for a free reinforcement kit by calling (in the U.S.) 800-233-5921 between 8 am and 5 pm ET. Customers are urged to not return seats to retail stores where purchased.

"Evenflo is very proud of its 85-year record of safety," said Lindsay Harris, Vice President, Corporate Engineering and Quality at Evenflo. "Despite our best efforts, sometimes issues arise even after products have been rigorously tested. Evenflo's testing has demonstrated the effectiveness of the reinforcement bracket at levels greatly exceeding the already-severe federal requirements. No other Evenflo car seats have experienced similar damage," he said.

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