Dr. Martens Boots Recalled Over Chemical Hazard

More than 30,000 Dr. Martens Vegan boots have been recalled due to a risk of problems that may be caused by prolonged exposure to a chemical on the tongue lining, which may cause allergic reactions or other injuries. 

The Dr. Martens boots recall was announced by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) on August 24, indicating that consumers may experience problems following prolonged and direct contact with the chemical benzidine inside the boot lining.

Exposure to the chemical benzidine may cause skin allergies or rashes that may swell, blister and become irritated, cause discomfort.

The recall includes about 30,900 Dr. Martens unisex Vegan 1460 eight eye boots, which are marked with the product code 14585 printed on the tongue label. The boots are black cherry in color and have black shoe laces with a thick sole and a golden heel pull tab marked with the manufacturer name, “AirWair”. All sizes are included in the recall and the shoes are marked with batch code starting with “GV” and end with either Q, R, or S.

According to the CPSC, an estimated 30,000 pairs of the recalled boots were distributed for sale throughout the United States, and an additional 900 were distributed for sale in Canada.

The recalled Dr. Martens boots were manufactured in Vietnam under Airwair of Portland, Oregon. They were sold at Dr. Martens, Journeys and independent retail stores nationwide as well as online at Amazon.com, Dr.Martens.com, Shoebuy.com, and other online retailers from January 2015 through July 2017 for about $125.

The CPSC is encouraging all customers to stop wearing the boots immediately and to contact Dr. Martens for a full refund or free replacement product by contacting the manufacturers customer service department at 800-460-3930 or emailing them at dmservice@drmartens.com. Customers may also visit the company’s website at www.drmartens.com and navigate to the “Product Recall” link for additional information.