Graco adds 403,000 child seats to recall

DETROIT (AP) — Graco Children's Products has added more than 403,000 child seats to last month's recall of 3.8 million to replace faulty harness buckles.

But the added seats won't end a dispute with the U.S. government's road safety watchdog. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration still wants Graco to add 1.8 million infant seats to the recall because they have the same buckles.

Buckles can get gummed up by food and drinks, making it difficult to remove children. In some cases parents have had to cut harnesses to get their children out. The agency says the problem increases the risk of injuries in emergencies.

Graco said in a letter to the agency that it found additional toddler and harnessed booster seats that should be recalled.

SAFETY ISSUES: Feds want answers on why infant seats not recalled

The 403,222 seats added to the recall include 2006 through 2014 Argos 70 Elite, Ready Ride, Step 2, My Ride 65 with Safety Surround, My Size 70, Head Wise 70 with Safety Surround, Nautilus 3-in-1, Nautilus Plus, and Smart Seat with Safety Surround, according to NHTSA documents.

In its letter to NHTSA, Graco said it didn't include the infant seats because they are used differently than the toddler seats, and because in an emergency, an adult can remove the whole seat from the car rather than unlatch the buckle.

"Graco looks forward to further discussions with the agency to resolve any remaining issues relating to those additional car seats," the letter said.

Atlanta-based Graco, a division of Newell Rubbermaid, has until March 20 to explain why last month's recall didn't include infant seats.

A NHTSA spokesman wouldn't comment and referred a reporter to the agency's previous statements about why seven rear-facing infant seat models should be recalled.

The recall, now at 4.2 million, is the fourth-largest child seat recall in American history. If the infant seats are added, it would be the largest such recall.

IRS watchdog: Phone scam is largest ever

WASHINGTON (AP) — More than 20,000 taxpayers have been targeted by fake Internal Revenue Service agents in the largest phone scam the agency has ever seen, the IRS inspector general said Thursday.

Thousands of victims have lost a total of more than $1 million.

As part of the scam, fake IRS agents call taxpayers, claim they owe taxes, and demand payment using a prepaid debit card or a wire transfer. Those who refuse are threatened with arrest, deportation or loss of a business or driver's license, said J. Russell George, Treasury inspector general for tax administration.

Real IRS agents usually contact people first by mail, George said. And they don't demand payment by debit card, credit card or wire transfer.

The inspector general's office started receiving complaints about the scam in August. Immigrants were the primary target early on, the IG's office said. But the scam has since become more widespread.

Tax scams often escalate during filing season, George said. People have been targeted in nearly every state.

"This is the largest scam of its kind that we have ever seen," George said in a statement. "The increasing number of people receiving these unsolicited calls from individuals who fraudulently claim to represent the IRS is alarming."

The script is similar in many calls, leading investigators to believe they are connected. The inspector general's office is working with major phone carriers to try to track the origins of the calls, the IG's office said.

The scam has been effective in part because the fake agents mask their caller ID, making it look like the call is coming from the IRS, George said. In some cases, fake agents know the last four digits of Social Security numbers, and follow up with official-looking emails.

They request prepaid debit cards because they are harder to trace than bank cards. Prepaid debit cards are different from bank cards because they are not connected to a bank account. Instead, consumers buy the cards at stores, ! and use them just like a bank card, until the money runs out or they add more.

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