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Mon 25th Apr | 2016

Warning to Consumers: IKEA Furniture Poses Tip-Over Hazard

Personal Injury Product liability Product Recalls BY

After a third death associated with IKEA furniture tipping over, officials have issued a renewed warning to parents.

Last July, IKEA issued a warning to anchor down furniture after two children were killed by the company’s freestanding chests and dressers. There was a renewed warning recently after reports of a third child being crushed to death.

So far, IKEA has sent out 300,000 anchoring kits to consumers. Consumers who purchased freestanding IKEA furniture are encouraged to contact the company to get an anchoring kit to prevent this type of tip-over. In addition to the anchoring kits, IKEA said it would be furthering its repair program, although they did not give any details.

PRODUCT & WARNING DETAILS

  • What products are affected by this warning?
    IKEA MALM three and four drawer chests, two styles of MALM six drawer chests, and other chests and dressers.
  • How many of these are affected by the repair program?
    According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, approximately 7 million MALM chests and an additional 20 million other IKEA chests and dressers are affected.
  • What types of incidents have these dressers and chests caused in the past?
    The CPSC and IKEA received their first report about an injury caused by these products in February 2014, after a two-year-old boy was fatally pinned against his bed after his MALM six-drawer chest tipped over. The second report came in June 2014 when a 23-month-old was killed after his three-drawer MALM chest tipped over onto him. Additionally, IKEA and the CPSC have received 14 other tip-over reports, four of which resulted in injuries.
  • What can consumers do?
    If you own one of these chests or dressers and it is not currently secured to the wall, contact IKEA to order an anchoring kit and then anchor the furniture to the wall. In the meantime, consumers should place unanchored furniture in an area unreachable by children.

For more information, visit the Consumer Product Safety Commission website.