(Yicai) June 9 -- Midea Group’s recall of 1.7 million air conditioners in the North American market is a voluntary action, not one instigated by regulators, the Chinese home appliances giant told Yicai.

Midea issued the recall for its U-shaped window air-cons on June 5 after receiving feedback from users about mold growth on the units’ fan blades, the Foshan-based company said today.

The product fully complies with relevant standards for the North American market, and the issue arose from isolated incidents caused by specific external environmental conditions, Midea said. The company takes the issue very seriously, it added, so even though it was not required to do so by regulators, Midea has proactively initiated a recall in the United States and Canada. 

Midea noted that the mold issue is an extremely rare occurrence. Since the U-shaped window aircon was launched in North America in March 2020, the firm has received 152 customer complaints related to this phenomenon. With over 1.7 million units sold, that rate is less than 0.01 percent, Midea noted. Cases are often linked to factors such as extreme humidity, it said.

To address the issue, Midea is offering affected customers various remedies, including refunds, accessory kits for self-repair, and free on-site inspections and repairs. The fix involves installing a redesigned drain plug to evacuate condensate more rapidly after shutdown, preventing mold formation in the airflow path and on the fan blades.

Midea’s shares [SHE: 000333] closed 0.4 percent lower at CNY75.40 (USD10.50) each today. The broader Shenzhen market rose 0.7 percent.

Editor: Tom Litting