If you have heard anything about the UTV industry, you’ve probably heard someone poke fun at the Polaris RZR for catching on fire. It’s been known by many enthusiasts that quite a few RZRs have caught on fire and burned to the ground. Unfortunately, Polaris also knew of this problem and failed to notify the CSPC of the defect, and now they’re forced to pay 27.25 million dollar penalty.

“Polaris failed to immediately notify CPSC of the defect or risk posed by the off-road vehicles as required by federal law,” said the CPSC. Polaris had received reports of 150 fires, one of them resulting in the death of a 15-year-old. They also knew of 11 burn injuries and a fire that destroyed ten acres of land.

This settlement was announced on April 2nd and it was issued in conjunction with the latest Polaris recall. Polaris did not admit to any guilt, but it said it “remains vigilant and focused on continuous learning and bolstering its safety and quality practices.”

The issue revolves around the exhaust system and the components that reside near it. There is a heat shield in place to help protect the nearby components from exposure to excessive heat levels. That heat shield, however, would crack/fail and cause the nearby components to catch on fire.

Many of these heat shields just came loose and fell off entirely. This all comes after years of constant recalls across many of Polaris’ vehicles, costing them millions of dollars and driving their stock further down.