The parent company of IC Bus notified NHTSA last week of a recall campaign to address an issue with the restraining belt on Ricon wheelchair lifts installed on its CE, FE, RE and BE school buses.

According to Navistar, Ricon learned that bus operators are able to insert the belt tongue into the restraint buckle without fully engaging the latching mechanism, making the belt appear to be latched. The latching mechanism is designed to prevent the lift from moving. The defect could allow the operator to unknowingly move the lift and could result in injury.

The recall affects 1,492 school bus vehicles and 20 similar model non-school bus vehicles manufactured between Dec. 10, 2007 and Jan. 12 of this year.

Navistar said it is working with Ricon to fix the issue, with Ricon to provide customers with a warning decal and a DVD training guide. The recall is expected to begin around July 16.

In unrelated company recall news, six model BE and CE school buses manufactured between April 22 and May 14 last year have software problems with Ricon S Series and K Series L-Model wheelchair lifts that may allow the lifts to overrun the floor level. That recall is expected to also begin around July 16, with Ricon to provide owners with a bulletin outlining proper wheelchair lift operation while it investigates the software problem.