Office Depot Agrees to Pay $3.4 Million for Failure to Report Safety Hazards of Office Chair
Office Depot has agreed to pay a $3.4 million civil penalty to settle charges that it failed to timely report product safety hazards, according to an agreement that has been provisionally accepted by the Consumer Product Safety Commission (here). The…
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company continued to sell two models of office chairs despite receiving 33 and 153 reports, respectively, of the seatback detaching, said CPSC in a May 27 press release (here). Office Depot never reported the hazard for one model, and only reported the other after prodding from CPSC staff, said the release. As part of the settlement, Office Depot has agreed to implement a compliance program that includes "confidential employee reporting of compliance concerns to a senior manager; effective communication of compliance policies and procedures, including training; senior management responsibility for, and general board oversight of, compliance; and requirements for record retention," said CPSC. Office Depot did not admit nor deny its guilt as part of the settlement.