SFI Decertifies IMPACT

[DanRemmers]

Interesting...

http://www.sfifoundation.com/Decertific ... -26-10.pdf

[brian]

Ol man Simson has had wars with SFI for years. Probably has less to do with products and more of a clash of wills.

[smsazzy]

text:
SFI Notice to Decertify Impact Racing Products
SafeRacer has never sold any Impact Racing products, but we know a lot of our customers and friends have some items from Impact. This note is just to make you aware of Notices that SFI posted yesterday concerning items they certify from Impact Racing. Please review the note from SFI, notice the Effective Date and be prepared to act accordingly.

March 26, 2010 - NOTICE OF DECERTIFICATION; NOTICE TO CEASE AND DESIST AND TERMINATION OF ALL CONTRACTS OF PARTICIPATION ISSUED TO IMPACT RACING

SFI Foundation, Inc., has issued a Notice of Decertification; Notice of Cease and Desist, and a notice terminating all Contracts of Participation to Impact Racing. Effective April 27, 2010, all products manufactured and/or distributed by Impact Racing pursuant to SFI Specification Programs 3.2A, 3.3, 16.1, and 16.5 are decertified. Evidence obtained by SFI shows that over a period of years Impact Racing has engaged in the production and use of counterfeit SFI conformance labels and patches, and affixed them to Impact products for use in motorsports. Under the Contracts of Participation between SFI and Impact, SFI conformance labels and patches may only be obtained from SFI and no other source. Evidence shows that Impact had counterfeit SFI labels and patches made in Asia and then affixed them to Impact products it distributed to members of the racing community. To SFI’s knowledge, Impact never advised its customers that its products contained phony SFI labels and patches. Impact never advised SFI of its systematic and longstanding practice of counterfeiting and distributing SFI patches and labeling.

Impact has been directed to cease and desist from this practice. SFI has directed Impact to immediately notify all affected customers to remove the counterfeit labeling and to offer the affected customers a full refund of the purchase price. SFI is requesting that all counterfeit conformance labels removed from Impact products be sent to SFI.

SFI has elected not to decertify these products immediately in order to minimize the potential hardships to members of the racing community that have been brought about by Impact’s counterfeiting activities.

SFI has also elected to terminate all Contracts of Participation with Impact Racing effective 90 days from March 24, 2010. Under the terms of the Contracts, either party may terminate the agreements without penalty upon 90 days notice. This means that Impact will no longer be able to participate in any SFI programs after this 90 day period.

SFI has taken these actions in the best interests of the safety and integrity of the racing community. This is in keeping with SFI’s mission and purpose.

For a downloadable .pdf of this notice, please click on the following link: >Decertification Notice 03-26-10.

[problemchild]

"SFI has taken these actions in the best interests of the safety and integrity of the racing community" .... that is funny!

Read the statement. It is all about money and control!

If you substitute the word "alternate" for "counterfeit", the message is the same .... but without the inflammatory tone!

When this all plays out .... hopefully everybody can use their existing safety gear and the system will be improved. As a consumer, I don't care where my tags came from, any more than I care where my HNR posts came from.

[Veefan]

Apexspeed has a good thread on this, a request was made to have all Impact owners send a request to BOD@scca.com asking that owners be allowed to use the equipment once the affected equipment has been re-inspected by a National Tech Inspector and approved for use based on set of specifications issued by the SCCA.

Originally Posted by Bob Devol
Well, I have a two-year-old $1,000 Impact suit with an SFI 3.2A tag. Looks like it turns into a pumpkin after April 27th.

I have sent a reparation request to Bill Simpson, but I'm guessing pigs will become a lot more aerodynamic before anything happens in that regard.

So, I've sent this request to the SCCA Board of Directors. I suggest that all other Club Racers who own Impact suits do the same...

Dear Directors:

As I am sure you are aware, due to counterfeiting of SFI certification labels, most driver's suits manufactured by Impact Racing will be decertified by SFI as of April 27, 2010.

Unfortunately, I own a $1,000, two-year-old Impact suit that technically will not be GCR legal after April 27.

I have sent a certified letter to Bill Simpson at Impact Racing demanding reparations, but I imagine it will be very long time, if ever, that anything will be done about that. I fully expect Impact Racing to be bankrupt and out of business very shortly. (In fact, at a drag race this past weekend, an Impact factory booth was selling Impact gear at unheard-of deep discounts -- $170 helmets, $25 shoes, etc.)

I'm sure I'm not the only SCCA Club Racing driver affected by this travesty. So, on behalf of myself and all the other SCCA Club Racing owners of soon-to-be decertified Impact suits, I request that the BOD and Comp Board institute a program to individually recertify each Impact suit as acceptable for SCCA Club and Pro Racing use.

This could be done by having the affected suits each personally re-inspected by a National Tech Inspector to a set of specifications issued by Club Racing after which a Letter of Certification would be issued that would presented by the driver each time the suit is reinspected. Or perhaps a safety equipment industry consultant/engineer could be retained to re-inspect the suits.

If the Directors recall, it was only a few years ago that GCR driver's suit regulations specified the acceptable materials and constructions for suits and did not require SFI or FIA tags, so it seems to me that asking for Impact suits to be inspected according to those standards is not beyond the realm of possibility.

Most Impact racing suits in use in Club Racing are five years old or less. The owners of these suits will be faced with having to junk those perfectly good suits and purchase new ones at costs of hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

I'm hoping that the Board will provide reflief and assistance so that we can keep the costs of our already expensive racing in check.

Thank you for your consideration

Robert V Devol

[hardingfv32-1]

Does it not seem odd that it toke years to learn about the counterfeit labels. What does the SFI do to verify compliance of the products? Were they fooled by the labels? How can we trust them to know what is going on with the product itself? Seems like a waste of money involving them at all. In this case of the SFI, something is not better than nothing.

Brian

[problemchild]

SFI are the same people that say we need our seatbelts replaced every 2 yrs because of sunlight degradation. Only one side of the story has been released. Hopefully, this will all sort out for those with Impact gear.

[hardingfv32-1]

I have learned from another forum that SFI does not inspect any products. NONE of the products with SFI labels have ever been inspected by an independent party, even with a random sampling technique.

Now that is news to me. It sure seems like the word "certified" and SFI went hand in hand. Simple fact: you have no idea if ANY of your safety gear is right! Simpson had one of the best reputations in the market. What did that get you?

So all they do is provide specifications probably in conjunction with the manufactures?

Actually nothing criminal done by Simpson/Impact using counterfeit labels. All they are stating with the labels is that they are building to SFI specs. Contractually or copyrights might not allow them to use something exactly similar to the SFI label. SCCA could more accurately require that products be built to SFI spec, not that a official SFI label be attached.

What a wonderful free market capitalist system. Who needs consumer protection?

Brian

[Matt King]

Regardless of what SFI "certified" means or who did what to cheat or circumvent the system, the reality is that SFI controls the issuing of a label that indicates to a sanctioning body that a particular piece of equipment meets a standard that the sanctioning body has deemed necessary to allow you to race. WIthout the SFI's endorsement, the gear is "worthless" regardless of how good it actually may be at providing protection since the owner can't use it to meet that requirement. The upshot of this for me is that I bought a new drivers suit today because according to the SFI's statement, my old suit will cease to be SCCA legal as of two days before my first race of the season. I'm not going to hold my breath hoping for a favorable resolution in the next three weeks, so I didn't have many other options, considering a suit isn't something I want to have to try to find a day or two before the race. I was considering getting a new one anyway, so it's not the end of the world, but that money would have been better spent a new set of front shocks. My belts are also from Impact and currently still legal (as of getting my annual inspection done today) thru Dec 2011, but I can probably wait a couple of weeks to see if anything sorts out to allow me to keep those. If not, I'll be out around $900 because of this.

[Veefan]

Unless this gets cleared up soon, even with an annual tech on a car I wouldn't try and show up to a race or the grid with a set of Impact belts.

GCR states
"Throughout the racing season, the Tech crew is encouraged to perform
regular re-inspections through walk around observation in the pits
and paddock, or through special impounds by group or class with the
concurrence of the Chief Steward."

[hardingfv32-1]

Well that is very easy to solve. You remove the the Impact label. There is no rule requiring you to advertise other peoples products. You probably could remove the label on a driver suit.

Brian

[brian]

Brian, I just love the way you think. Really! outside the box, love it. Truth of the matter is that SFI viewed the labels as a revenue source. I undersatand they sell them. Bill Simpson has always been a contrarian didn't want spend the money. Chances are the products are ok most are grossly overbuilt anyway.

[sharplikestump]

Is it my imagination, or has FIA ALSO decertified Impact products? Not trying to pile on, so please correct me if I am wrong.
Mike P.

[brian]

Hi Mike. Don't know about FIA but read that Impact had serious quality problems as well so I stand corrected.

[billinstuart]

Go to the Impact website and read the legal post..this ain't over yet. Although I'm no longer an active driver, I've always respected Bill Simpson and his products. I feel strongly this issue is BS.

This will end up biting SFI in the butt, hopefully.

Bill

[SR Racing]

I don't doubt that the Impact stuff is decent and meets criteria. The issue is stupidity and screwing customers. This reminds me of the Clinton Blue Dress issue. Whether you feel he was a good president or not, he still had someone under his desk in the oval office. Pretty stupid.

Also, while (rightfully or wrongly) certifcation is being pulled he has told his customers that they are not giving refunds.

It appears to me he did this to save a few bucks and potentially risk his customers use of his products. Probably no safety issues, but Pretty stupid.

[problemchild]

As the vultures circle, I wanted to give a shout out to Crowe Enterprises. If it gets to the point where people with Impact belts need to re-web, http://www.crowenterprizes.com/Pages/Recert.html

I just got two sets done, motivately primarily by price (7-pt Willans and 6-pt Leaf with shipping for $246) but was very impressed by the complete service and quality of the new hardware and Cam-lock latch! Two thumbs up!

Once again, lets hope it does not come to that.

[Matt King]

It's not completely over, but a settlement has been reached that allows those of us with current 09/10 dated Impact belts to keep them. What happens with suits and older dated stuff remains to be seen.

http://www.sfifoundation.com/PressRelease04-01-10.pdf

[Veefan]

Based on this memo from the Board, all Impact equipment with SFI certification can be used... until further notice.

RACING MEMO

DATE: March 31, 2010 NUMBER: RM 10-04

FROM: Club Racing Board

TO: All Participants

SUBJECT: SFI Decertification of Impact Products

SCCA is aware of the action taken by SFI against Impact Racing. We are in the process of determining what action (if any) will be needed for our drivers. We will communicate the outcome to our drivers, tech personnel and stewards via member email and website posting when the answers have been determined. Until further notice, it is business as usual and as long as your safety products have SFI certification (patch/sticker) that meets our current GCR requirements, you would be considered compliant.