North Carolina Product Liability Lawyer & Attorney : D. Hardison Wood : Toy Safety, Child Restraint, Car Seats

I was recently watching a television segment on the news regarding pool and spa drains. The story discussed how children can become entrapped in the drains, causing their intestines to essentially be sucked out due to the force of the drains. It is absolutely shocking the enormous injuries these old-styled drains can cause and the enormous strength they have.

Tje CPSC released a report and statement on May 21, 2008.

A new federal pool and spa safety law was signed by the President on December 19, 2007. The Virginia Graeme Baker Pool and Spa Safety Act requires that by December 19, 2008, all public pools and spas have safety drain covers, and in certain circumstances, an anti-entrapment system. The goal of the law is to improve the safety of all pools and spas by increasing the use of layers of protection and promoting uninterrupted supervision to prevent child drownings and entrapments.

The entire report may be read here.

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CPSC announced that  Kids Station Toys has recalled about 1 million chit and chat toy cell phones. The toy can break apart causing a serious choking hazard for children. It should be noted that the phones with a visible screw on the hinge are not included. Read the notice here.

If you or your family have been negatively affected by a defective product and would like to discuss your matter please contact us at 1-877-829-7211.

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Seat belts can save your life if they work. 90,000 2008 Toyota Highlanders and Toyota Highlander hybrids are being recalled due to the fact that the seat belts' locking mechanisms failing.

The locking mechanism on the seat belts apparently cannot secure properly when certain rear-facing child safety seats are used, which could cause the child seats to move, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported on Friday. Read More

If you have been affected by a seat belt failure or any other mechanism defect, please report it the NHTSA. If our law firm can be of  any assistance please do not hesitate to  contact us.

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The CPSC put out a safety alert on the  harmful  results form ingesting magnets. Through  our child safety litigation work, we have learned of the many hazards of magnetic toys. Magnets, not just those  found in  toys, can be a real danger. Read the  safety alert here.

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Our children and their  safety is something about which we care deeply. That is why our law firm involves itself in various types of litigation involving child safety. Awhile back we were touched by a video we saw on youtube about a young boy, Kyle David Miller (see here). He unfortunately was killed in a car crash. He was not in a five point harness, but rather a booster seat which utilized the car's seat belt. When we personally saw the video, our family was driven to find a booster seat for our children that had a five point harness. We realized that the booster seat we were using, which used our car's seat belt, was not securing our children the way they needed. We have since learned that there has been a foundation set up in  memory of Kyle which collects money in order to buy 5 point harness seats for children up to 80 lbs. who otherwise would not have access to them. Check  out the video and website to learn more  about the foundation. 

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It seems that  555 people, which includes over 100 children, died in all terrain vehicle (ATV) accidents in 2006. Officials have said that they expect the number to increase as more hospitals and coroners report information. The Consumer Product Safety Commission also published in their annual report that and additional 146,600 people have been treated in emergency rooms for their  ATV-related injuries of which more than a quarter were children.

Consumer groups and parents who have lost children in crashes have complained for years about the safety of the popular off-road vehicles.
The industry contends it's not the ATV but the driver that's the problem. "ATVs have never been shown to be an unsafe product, but there have been bad decisions made by people sitting on the seat," said Mike Mount, a spokesman for the California-based Specialty Vehicle Institute of America.

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Here we are  again discussing the numerous toy recalls and child items that have occurred over the past few  weeks.  The Family Dollar Store recalled Halloween pails due to  unsafe levels of lead paint. Jo-Ann stores recalled children's toy garden tools also due to the  unsafe levels of lead paint. Fisher Price  has now added the Go Diego Go boats to their recall list, again  due to the  unsafe levels of lead paint.  Dollar Tree stores recalled children's jewelry for....yes....lead paint hazards. Good grief...with the number of children's items that have been placed in the marketplace and have needed to be recalled due  to safety issues... it is just a  matter of time before we start to really  learn the number of children  affected whether through actual toy litigation or other means. But something  needs to be done.  It is nearly impossible to buy a child a toy without worrying if somehow the product you just purchased contains unsafe levels of lead, or  to fear that somehow it was a toy that was actually included in the recall but happened to somehow  miss being pulled from the shelf for some reason.  It is a terrible feeling as a parent to constantly  be  unsure if what you are giving your child could in fact hurt them. Brands that were once "trusted" aren't any longer. It is truly unnerving.

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Recently, I overheard a conversation which reminded me about the importance of this question of car seat versus a booster seat.  As I waited for my daughter during one of her after school activities I heard  a group of mothers and fathers discussing the fact that they were switching their children to the booster seats that use the car's seat belt rather than a five  point harness.  They were discussing that this was a change they needed to make because when they pick their children up from school through the car  pool lane, it is  too difficult to find a  place to park the car, get out and buckle their children into their five point harnessed car seats. 

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From toys to cups....
The US Consumer Product  Safety Commission  issued  a  press release today involving children's plastic cups form Starbucks.

Hazard: If the cup is dropped, the colorful face on the cup can break off and leave small parts or sharp exposed edges that can pose a choking or laceration hazard to young children.

Incidents/Injuries: Starbucks has received seven reports of the cups breaking, including two reports in which a child began to choke on a broken piece. No injuries have been reported.

Read the  whole release here. 

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Today the US  Consumer  Product Safety Commission announced a recall  involving Kolcraft play yards after a 10 month old died.

CPSC received a report of a 10-month old boy who strangled on the changing table’s restraint strap that was hanging down into Kolcraft’s “Sesame Beginnings” Travel Play Yard where the child was located.

These play yards were sold from 2001 to 2007. What is terribly frightening is to speculate the number of households  that  have these play yards  since they have been on the market for  several years.  I  know our household has one, as do "the grandparents".  Please read the announcement here and make  sure if you have one,  you  remove the  changing  pad/cradle area when your child is  in the  play yard.

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Approximately 1 million simplicity  cribs were recalled earlier this week.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is announcing today a voluntary recall with Simplicity Inc., of Reading, Pa., of about 1 million cribs. The drop-side can detach from the crib, which can create a dangerous gap and lead to the entrapment and suffocation of infants. CPSC is aware of two deaths in Simplicity manufactured cribs with older style hardware, including a 9-month-old child and a 6-month-old child, where the drop-side was installed upside down. CPSC is also aware of seven infant entrapments and 55 incidents in these cribs.

What is most frustrating about this recall  to  me, is that the first death occurred over  two and a half years ago. It appears that two deaths occurred with older hardware, and a third death  has  now occurred with  the  newer hardware.  The question arises...what took so long to have this investigated? Read the announcement here.

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On August 30, 2007 some Dorel Juvenile Group  (DJG) issued a recall which may affect a potential 1,267,978 units.

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