In a unanimous vote, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has approved
new mandatory crib standards that ban the manufacture and sale of drop-side
cribs, strengthen mattress support, demand stronger crib hardware, and
make safety tests tougher. Cribs made, sold, or rented in the US have
to comply with these standards by June 2011. Hotels, motels, child care
facilities, family child care homes, and other places of public accommodations
have 24 months after the rule is published to be in compliance. This marks
the first time in almost three decades that the crib safety standards
have been updated
Since 2007, the CPSC has recalled over 11 million dangerous cribs. More
than 9 million drop-side cribs have been recalled since 2005. At least
32 infant strangulation and suffocation deaths involving drop-side cribs
have occurred in this last decade.
As our child injury lawyers have reported in past blog posts, many crib
injuries have taken place. Fall accidents, entrapment, strangulation,
and suffocation are among the more common kinds of crib accidents. Per
USA Today in August, its analysis of CPSC information found that before 14 crib companies
recalled their cribs, they received over 900 incident reports complaining
of crib injuries and deaths, as well as of cribs falling apart.
Faulty or defective hardware, too big of a gap that can get created between
the crib’s drop-side and the mattress, and drop-side malfunction
are just some of the defects that have contributed to the child injuries
and deaths. The CPSC is hoping that the tougher safety standards will
reduce the dangers found in cribs and save lives while making it easier
for children and parents to sleep through the night.
CPSC Approves Strong New Crib Safety Standards To Ensure a Safe Sleep for
Babies and Toddlers, CPSC, December 17, 2010
CPSC’s ban on drop-side cribs takes effect in June, USA Today, December 17, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008
Crib safety tips, Consumer Reports
Contact our crib defect lawyers to discuss your case.
