Just a couple of months ago, we wrote about the dangers of IKEA dresser
tip-overs, which has caused the death of 6 children, as well as injuries
to 41 others. Yesterday, IKEA announced a recall of 29 million chests
and drawers. Though the three children who have died in the past two years
were all victims of one model, the Malm dressers with three or more drawers,
the IKEA dresser recall includes a much larger selection of their products.
Malm chests of drawers and dressers with 3, 4, 5, and 6 drawers have been
recalled. If you have another model of IKEA chest of drawers or dresser
in your home, you should review the lengthy list of
recalled products to ensure the safety of children in your home.
During a previous repair call, IKEA offered anchoring kits to owners of
dressers deemed unsafe by regulators. The company has repeatedly stated
that all tall furniture, not only IKEA products, poses a tip-over threat
unless anchored into a wall. While they maintain this stance, increasing
pressure and concerns about child safety led them to undertake the recall,
as well as the complete discontinuation of the Malm product line.
Tip-Over Issues Primarily in U.S.
IKEA has noted this problem is peculiar to the United States, as there
have not been similar issues or concerns globally. The furniture giant
sells nearly 150 million dressers each and every year. Partly, consumers
in the United States have been slow to embrace the practice of anchoring
products into their walls. Heavy televisions are another product that
should be anchored into the wall but often are not.
That said, there are times when anchoring heavy or tall furniture items
into the wall are forbidden by rental policy. Such was the case in the
most recent death, in which a 22-month-old child pulled a Malm dresser
over onto himself. The parents say their rental agreement forbade them
from putting holes in the wall of their apartment. In these instances,
parents are forced to decide between violating a rental contract and violating
the safety standards of a product. This seems to be a challenge that is
unique to the U.S., but the risk posed by such language in a rental agreement is real.
What To Do About Your Recalled IKEA Product
IKEA is still offering free wall anchoring kits to consumers who prefer
to simply anchor their purchased products to the wall. There are three
ways to receive your wall anchoring kit:
- visit an IKEA retail store;
- go to
IKEAUSA.com/saferhomestogether; - call (888) 966-4532.
For those who prefer a refund, IKEA will provide full refunds for dressers
or chests of drawers purchased after 2002 and partial store credit for
recalled items purchased 2002 or earlier.
Wagner Reese has a long history of success in product liability cases such
as these. It can be overwhelming to face down a large company with so
many resources on hand. Our attorneys can balance out the power differential
and will fight relentlessly to get you the compensation you deserve. All
you have to do to begin is call us at (888) 204-8440 for a completely
FREE consultation.