In May of 2020, furniture manufacturer Prepac recalled 21,000 dressers because they are unstable and can tip over if they are not anchored to a wall. This tip-over risk poses a serious entrapment hazard that can result in death or serious injury to children. Consumers who own the recalled dresser are instructed to immediately stop using it and place it in a room where it cannot be accessed by children.
Recalled Dresser
The dressers involved in the recall are the four-drawer dressers with plastic drawer glides. They come in black, oak, and white finishes. The dressers were sold on Overstock, Amazon, and at Target between April 2005 and September 2018. No injuries or deaths have been reported related to these dressers.
Prepac isn’t offering consumers a refund for the dresser but is instead offering a free tip-over restraint kit to anchor the dresser to the wall. Consumers can also request a one-time home installation of an anchor. Safety experts fear that this is not enough protection. The restraint kit solution does not ensure that a dresser won’t be moved later. The best remedy for the recall of an unsafe product is a full refund.
Dresser Tip-Overs
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), furniture tip-over incidents result in an estimated 290,000 emergency room visits per year. Thousands of these incidents involve dressers. A dresser tip-over can be deadly, especially to small children.
Unfortunately, there is currently no government standard that requires furniture manufacturers to test the stability of their products before placing them on the market. There is a voluntary industry standard created by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) international. This standard states that a dresser that is 27 inches or taller should stand upright when a 50-pound weight is hung on a single open drawer. Manufacturers should abide by this standard to avoid tip-overs and should not sell dressers that are prone to tip-overs to consumers. If they fail to do so, they should be held liable for any resulting injuries.
Contact an Experienced Product Liability Attorney
If you or your child has been injured by a dangerous product, you should have an experienced product liability attorney evaluate your case. At Bonina & Bonina, P.C., we have been handling product liability claims for over 50 years. Contact us online or call us at 1-888-MEDLAW1 to schedule your free consultation. Hom