Parents, family, and friends alike enjoy doting on children. They purchase gifts and necessities of toys, games, clothes and accessories, as well as other child products and supplies such as cribs, strollers, milk bottles, pacifiers, and even baby food. Since these products are intended for a child’s use, the public tends to believe that they have been manufactured with the highest level of care and attention in order to keep children safe. The many defective child product and toy recalls announced by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) prove otherwise, however.
Child Product and Toy Recalls
Between the various U.S. regulatory agencies, such as the CPSC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), hundreds of product recalls are issued every year, including child products. In the first half of 2011 alone, the CPSC has issued recalls for millions of toys and other child products, including:
- 1,080,000 Battat Toy Keys with Remote due to a choking hazard
- Approximately 1,000,000 Maclaren Strollers due to amputation and laceration hazards
- 169,000 Bravo Sports Pogo Sticks due to fall and laceration hazards
- 208,000 Fisher-Price Little People Builders’ Load ‘n Go Wagons due to Laceration hazard
- 985,000 Delta Enterprise “Safety Peg” Drop-Side Cribs due to entrapment and suffocation hazards
- 30,000 Big Lots Metal Futon Bunk Beds due to entrapment hazard
- 29,000 Pampers® Natural Stages Pacifiers due to choking hazard
- 90,000 My Michelle girl’s clothing items due to lead exposure risk
- 22,000 Dream on Me Drop-Side Cribs due to fall, laceration, suffocation and entrapment hazards
- 240,000 Adventure Playsets Swing Sets due to fall hazard
- 375,000 Target Child Booster Seats due to fall hazard
These are not the only types of child products that may be recalled, however. In 2010, there were also recalls of child medication products. Within the year, all McNeil Children’s BENADRYL® Allergy FASTMELT® Tablets, Junior Strength MOTRIN® caplets and other over-the-counter (OTC) children’s medications were recalled by the FDA due to “insufficiencies” in their development or “adverse medical events.”
Injuries Caused by Defective Children’s Products
As demonstrated by the wide array of hazards associated with defective child products, a child may suffer any number of injuries. Also, because children are more vulnerable to injury and illness than adults, there is an extremely high risk of death. Child injuries and harmful events that may be caused by defective toys and other child products include bumps and bruises, scrapes, minor cuts, lacerations, choking, burns, fractured bones, brain damage, head injury, suffocation, and asphyxiation.
Because children are still growing and changing, their injuries have the potential to alter their lives forever. They cannot be treated as adults and the long-term effects of their injuries can be both severe and unpredictable. Substantial medical costs, rehabilitation, and other medical care will likely follow the child into adulthood and this is a burden that is difficult to bear.
Protecting Your Child’s Future
The manufacturers of children’s toys and other products should be making an even greater effort to test their products for safety than those who produce adult products, where safety testing is, of course, also essential. If the manufacturing company’s negligence, oversight, or misconduct results in injury to your child, then you may be entitled to a legal action. At Massey & Associates, P.C. our experienced Chattanooga child injury lawyers are committed to helping parents ensure a brighter future for their children. To learn more about how we can help you protect your child’s rights, contact one of our Tennessee toy recall attorneys for a free consultation at (423) 396-0720.
