The electric vehicle maker Rivian is recalling nearly 35,000 delivery vans amid concern their seat belts could fail to restrain the driver during an accident, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The recall affects 34,824 commercial electric vans used by Amazon and other companies to deliver goods. The issue with the seat belt is caused by repeated misuse, the NHTSA said, such as drivers frequently sitting on top of the belt instead of wearing it.
Irvine-based Rivian acknowledged that one of the cables used in its seat belts can get damaged. The recall doesn’t affect the company’s popular R1S SUVs or R1T pickup trucks.
To remedy the issue, Rivian released an over-the-air software update that will automatically detect seat belt misuse. The company will also inspect the affected vehicles and replace the driver’s seat belt if necessary.
The majority of the delivery vans are used by Amazon drivers as part of a deal Rivian made with the e-commerce giant to provide 100,000 electric vans by 2030. The vans started production in 2021.
Delivery drivers get in and out of the vehicle often while doing their job, which could lead to the type of seat belt misuse cited in the recall. Rivian isn’t aware of any accidents or injuries related to this issue, recall documents said.
Early this year, Rivian recalled 17,260 vehicles in the U.S. over a headlight issue that could reduce visibility and increase the risk of a crash.
It’s not the only EV maker to issue recalls recently — Elon Musk’s Tesla recalled nearly all Cybertrucks in March because a panel on the vehicle’s exterior could become detached while driving.
In 2023, Tesla recalled more than 2 million vehicles across its lineup to update software used for the Autopilot system.
Rivian competes with Tesla to sell electric vehicles at premium prices, but has struggled recently as the U.S. EV market gets battered by policy changes and tariffs.
Interest in EVs could be plateauing in California, experts said, where adoption rates are higher than the rest of the country.
The recent expiration of a $7,500 tax credit for new electric vehicles also cooled demand for the cars as the Trump administration places less emphasis on a green, electric future.
In October, Rivian laid off more than 600 workers, about 4.5% of its workforce, to cut costs. The company had just under 15,000 employees at the end of last year.
“With the changing operating backdrop, we had to rethink how we are scaling our go-to-market functions,” Chief Executive RJ Scaringe wrote in a note to employees at the time.
The company had a smaller round of layoffs the month prior that affected 1.5% of its staff, or around 200 employees.
Rivian’s shares were down 1% in midday trading on Wednesday and have risen more than 28% this year.
