Earlier this week the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced the recall of approximately 2.1 million drop-side cribs sold under the Stork Craft and Fisher-Price brand names. They were recalled after reports of the drop side separating from the crib. This poses a risk of entrapment and suffocation for infants.
This is the largest crib recall in the history of the U.S. It includes 2 million Stork Craft drop side cribs and 147,000 Fisher-Price drop side cribs manufactured by Stork Craft Manufacturing.
The recalled cribs were sold between January 1993 and October 2009. Sale prices were between $100 and $400. They were sold by some major U.S. retailers including Wal-Mart, Sears, Kmart, JC Penney, USA Baby, BJ’s Wholsesale Club, Meijer, Amazon.com, Babiesrus.com, Costco.com, Walmart.com, and Target.com.
The CPSC and Health Canada have received 100 reports where the drop side of the crib detached (67 in the U.S. and 43 in Canada). Children fell from the cribs in 20 of these cases. In 15 of the reported cases, infants were entrapped. If the drop side detaches, it can trap the infant between the crib and the mattress. There have been four reports of infants suffocating in the defective cribs. All of the infants who suffocated were 9 months or younger.
Parents who have a Stork Craft crib should immediately stop using the crib and contact Stork Craft for a free repair kit. The repair kit will transform the crib from a drop-side crib to a fixed side crib. This will eliminate the risk of detachment.
All Stork Craft drop side cribs that use a plastic trigger and one-hand drop side are included in the recall. Some have “storkcraft baby” or “storkling” on them. The Fisher-Price cribs display the Fisher-Price logo.
In recent years, several different brands of drop-side cribs have been recalled, but this is by far the largest crib recall. It is also the second recall of Stork Craft cribs this year. In January, a million Stork Craft cribs were recalled because of defective metal support brackets.
When you think about it, a drop-side crib design is not a very good idea. The design is inherently unstable. In addition, many families reuse cribs with different infants. The more a drop-side crib is reused, the greater the chance that it will break down. These cribs are generally made with inexpensive parts that are not very durable. Several manufacturers and retailers are moving away from the drop-side crib design. Toys R Us has announced that it is phasing out the design. A safe alternative is the “drop gate” crib, which also provides easy access. Drop gate cribs have gates that fold down rather than sides that slide down. The hinged gates firmly attach to the upper rail of the crib.
If your child has been injured by a defective product, call an experienced Georgia personal injury lawyer immediately. Time is of the essence. If you do not act quickly, you may lose your right to file suit. Call MLN Law at 404-531-9700 to schedule a free consultation.