Maytag recalls 2.3M dishwashers

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Maytag and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a recall Thursday of 2.3 million of its Maytag and Jenn-Air brand dishwashers because of a fire risk.

The recall affects under-counter or portable plastic tub model dishwashers, which were sold from July 1997 through June 2001 at department and appliance stores and by homebuilders nationwide.

One of the dishwasher models recalled by Maytag.

The products retailed between $370 and $800.

Maytag, a division of appliance maker Whirlpool (Charts), said it has received 135 reports of dishwasher fires and several reports of injuries linked to the dishwashers.

Consumers are urged to stop using the products immediately.

Attempts to determine Maytag's annual sales of dishwashers were unsuccessful, but the 2.3 million items recalled represent roughly 8.5 percent of the 27 million dishwashers shipped to retailers to be sold between 1997 and 2001, according to the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers, an industry trade group.

Maytag said it is offering a free in-home repair or a $75 cash-back reimbursement following the purchase of a new Maytag, Jenn-Air, Whirlpool or KitchenAid dishwasher.

For more information, consumers can contact Maytag Corporation at (800) 675-0535 anytime, or visit the firm's Web site at https://repair.maytag.com/repair/default.jsp.

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