Manufacturers of baby products know that parents are very concerned about their child’s safety. Many of these products are regulated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) in order to decrease the number of product related injuries.
There are instances, however, when faulty products make it into stores and are sold to consumers. When reports of injuries or design defects begin to surface, the CPSC will investigate and determine whether a product recall is the appropriate action to take. Just today, the CPSC announced a crib recall that affects over 90,000 consumers.
Cribs are meant to be a safe place for infants and small children to sleep. They are typically built high enough to prevent children from climbing out and have safety features that prevent children’s hands and heads from being trapped. But in the past year, the CPSC has issued several recalls for drop-side cribs because there were reports of injuries as a result of crib malfunctions.
This specific recall affects Bassettbaby cribs that have been sold nationwide since 2000. There have not been any reported injuries for this specific brand of crib. There have been, however, at least 36 reported infant fatalities in the past three years that were the result of defective drop-side cribs.
Despite the lack of injuries reported in regards to Bassetbaby cribs, there have been several incidents where children have fallen out of the cribs or have gotten trapped. The CPSC is urging consumers who own Bassettbaby drop-side cribs to stop using them. They can request a free kit from the manufacturing company that will prevent the drop-side from moving.
Source: The Wall Street Journal online, “Some 90k More Drop-Down Cribs Recalled; Made For Bassett,” Kevin Kingsbury, 22 November 2010
