Impact Racing DECERTIFIED by SFI

[altiain]

http://www.sfifoundation.com/Decerti...ce03-26-10.pdf

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.

Seems they've had some issues with counterfeit HANS anchors as well:

HANS, Impact embroiled in safety dispute over helmet clips
The maker of the HANS Device says that 82 of 87 Impact Racing helmets it inspected during the recent NASCAR race week at Bristol Motor Speedway had unauthorized anchors that don’t meet safety specifications on them, according to documents that are part of a lawsuit HANS Performance Products has filed against Impact Racing.

HANS obtained a temporary restraining order last Friday in U.S. District Court in Georgia to keep Impact, owned by longtime safety pioneer Bill Simpson, from selling helmets with the unauthorized anchors. The anchors on the helmet are attached to the tethers that connect to the head-and-neck support that sits on the driver’s shoulders.

The anchors on helmets sold by Impact, HANS alleges, had trademarks of HANS, the International Automobile Federation (FIA) and the SFI Foundation on them. The anchors are not magnetic, while the current HANS-authorized anchors now use magnetic material (HANS had used non-magnetic material in the past). HANS performed an in-house test of the disputed anchors and said the anchor did not meet the loads prescribed by the FIA.

“These differences are not merely aesthetic but can endanger the lives of customers,” HANS states in its request for the temporary restraining order.

HANS Chief Executive Officer Mark Stiles, in an affidavit, said in a conversation with Simpson that Simpson disavowed any association with manufacturing or purchasing counterfeit post anchors, saying that he had bought product direct from HANS Performance Products in the past and was now buying from an authorized HANS Performance Products dealer. He said that he could not see any difference in the post anchors used by Impact.

Simpson attorney Bob Horn said he could not comment on the specifics of the case until Impact Racing files a response later this month. “It sounds like a big deal, but it’s not,” he said Wednesday.

According to documents filed in the case, HANS executives were informed by a former Impact employee about the anchors. HANS then ordered a helmet, which had the alleged unauthorized anchors on them. At Bristol, Impact helmets made up 91 percent of all the helmets inspected with counterfeit anchors.

HANS has replaced the anchors free of charge, according to the documents, and many of the helmets found with the unauthorized anchors had the anchors replaced during the Bristol race weekend.

The HANS Device is one of two head-and-neck restraint systems approved by NASCAR. All drivers in the three national touring series must wear either a HANS Device or a Hutchens Device.

HANS Performance indicated in court documents that it had sold approximately $10 million worth of HANS Devices in North America and another $10 million in the rest of the world in 2008.

Wow... I think I'd be a little pissed if I'd spent any money on their products....

[POS Racing]

More stuff - http://www.ibj.com/update-impact-rac.../article/19055

Impact and the SFI Foundation Inc. issued a joint statement after a hearing in federal court. The two sides agreed that no counterfeit SFI conformance labels have been used in 2009 and 2010, and all Impact products made and sold during those years meet SFI specifications

[Titus]

Yep... saferacer.com sent me an email about it last week.

[onething]

I smell a conspiracy. Poor old Bill was the scape goat when Simpson took the heat for Earnhardt's death, and I bet there are a lot of twisted panties from when he started Impact.