Cargo Bikes Recalled Due to Broken Frames, Investigators Weighing Criminal Investigation

Dutch bike manufacturer Babboe was ordered to halt sales of their popular cargo bikes last week due to safety risks involving a series of broken frames.

“The Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA) has obliged cargo bike manufacturer Babboe to immediately stop the trade of all his cargo bikes. The company must also recall cargo bikes with a serious safety risk,” per an NVWA news bulletin.

Babboe posted on its website that because the company did not provide sufficient information to prove that certain cargo bike models don't pose a safety risk, the company will not only halt sales on the cargo bikes in question, it will temporarily cease sales of all Bobboe bikes.

An investigation into Babboe bikes, which are sold in over 30 countries, started in the latter part of 2023.

According to authorities, “research shows that Babboe received a large number of reports of broken frames in recent years. Babboe did not follow these reports as required by law.” Additionally, the NVWA accuses the cargo bike manufacturer of failing to investigate the causes of the bike frame failures.

Dutch news outlet RTL Nieuws interviewed former Babboe employees and customers.

"I have often seen enough emails from customers saying there was an accident," one ex-employee told RTL.

"That there have not been any deaths surprises me," stated another former employee.

One consumer recounted her harrowing experience on a Babboe cargo bike to the news outlet.

"My steering wheel started to shudder, that you still think: am I crazy, what is happening? And then the steering wheel shook so much that I could not hold him straight anymore," said Katelijne Frantzen, according to RTL. After getting off the bike, Frantzen shook the wheel “then klabang, then it was in the middle. Really in half.”

The NVWA notes that issues with cargo bike frames breaking “can lead to serious injury. For example, when cycling, children fall out of the bin. Especially when this happens in heavy traffic.”

Babboe is required to recall eight cargo bike models including the Babboe City/ City-E/ City Mountain, Babboe Curve/ Curve-E/ Curve Mountain, Babboe Big / Big-E, Babboe Dog / Dog-E, Babboe Max-E, Babboe Mini-E/ Mini Mountain, Babboe Pro Trike/ Trike-E/ Trike XL, and Babboe Carve-E/ Carve Mountain.

The NVWA is also extending the recall to Babboe cargo bikes recalled in 2019.

Babboe is responsible for completing all aspects of the recall. The NVWA gave Babboe several days to supply additional documentation that could impact the scope of the recall.

“Babboe and the NVWA continue to work together to ensure that the requested information is provided as quickly as possible, so that sales can be resumed,” according to the statement on Babboe’s homepage. However, as of 5 pm today, the company had not entered any information into the Safety Gate system, according to Irish Cycle.

Investigators are working with the Functional Public Prosecutor's Office to determine if this issue warrants a criminal investigation.

As news of the recall makes the rounds, calls to stop using Babboe bikes are growing.

“I hate sharing news like this, but [I] have worked on many Babboes over the years,” posted a bike mechanic, Bike Shop Girl, on X, formerly Twitter. "Please stop riding if you own one."