The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), in cooperation with the Siemens Industry Inc., Alpharetta, Ga., recently announced a voluntary recall of Siemens and Murray circuit breakers, load centers, and meter combos. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed. It is illegal to resell or attempt to resell a recalled consumer product.
The recalled circuit breakers have a spring clip that can break during normal use, leading to a loss of force to maintain a proper electrical connection in the panelboard. This can lead to excessive temperature, arcing, or thermal damage at the connection point and damage to the panelboard’s electrical insulation and can result in a fire, property damage, or personal injury. Siemens has received one report of a circuit breaker spring clip that broke during installation. No injuries have been reported.
This recall involves Siemens and Murray 15A through 50A single- and double-pole circuit breakers, load centers (circuit breakers that come with an electrical panel), and meter combos (contain a load center and a meter socket). “Siemens” or “Murray,” date codes 0610 or 0710, and the catalog number are printed on a label on the side of the circuit breakers. Date codes between June 2010 through August 2010 are stamped on the inside of the metal box of the load centers and meter combos. The catalog number for the load centers and meter combos is printed on a label inside the metal box door and on the packaging. The products were sold at the Home Depot, Lowes, other hardware and building supply stores, and numerous electrical distributors nationwide from June 2010 through August 2010 for between $2.50 to $235. Consumers should immediately contact Siemens for a free inspection by an electrician and a free replacement product. For more information and pictures of the recalled products, visit the CPSC website. CPSC is still interested in receiving incident or injury reports that are either directly related to this product recall or involve a different hazard with the same product. To report an incident, visit https://www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/incident.aspx.
