SaferProducts incident

Failure type

Battery failure

Incident narrative

SaferProducts.gov consumer incident report 20220212-64402-2147357607. Severity: Injury, Emergency Department Treatment Received. Product: ryobi CS20116NC50202 (Roybi ONE+ 18V Cordless Orbital Jig Saw). Incident: I have a Ryobi Jigsaw with a quick change bit holder. I was setting up the jigsaw for cutting a board, with no battery in it. The jigsaw blade sometimes doesn't engage and flies out, so I check by tugging at the blade when I put it in. This night, I couldn't get the blade to engage. That is a danger in itself because I don't know what causes it to engage and what doesn't, and sometimes the blade goes flying when I start it up, or just after. To try to"fix" that issue, I took the blade out and put the battery in. I planned on triggering the tool with no blade, in hopes it would rattle the quick change mechanism into working order. Then I planned to take the battery out and put the blade in and make sure it was secure. I didn't get that far, as when I plugged in the battery I accidently hit the trigger while switching my grip. I immediately felt pain. My thumb was likely between the plunger and the guide for the blade when it engaged. I went to the ER. My nail is cracked, my thumb broken and there is a nail bed laceration. Unrelated to this issue, but I have accidentally engaged the lock off, causing the jigsaw not to turn off when I expect it to. I feel like a better design would have a safety where the lock off is, like the one on the ryobi circular saw.